Julian Castro Suspends Presidential Campaign

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - APRIL 27: Democratic presidential candidate Julian Castro speaks at the National Forum on Wages and Working People: Creating an Economy That Works for All at Enclave on April 27, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Six of the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates are attending the forum, held by the Service Employees International Union and the Center for American Progress Action Fund, to share their economic policies. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

  

By Kayla LaRosa  

Former Housing and Urban Development secretary Julian Castro has suspended his presidential campaign.

Castro announced the news in a video posted to Twitter.

“I’m so proud of the campaign we’ve run together. We’ve shaped the conversation on so many important issues in this races, stood up for the most vulnerable people and given a voice to those who are often forgotten,” Castro said. “But with only a month until the Iowa Caucuses, and given the circumstances of this campaign season, I’ve determined that it simply isn’t our time, so today it’s with a heavy heart and with profound gratitude that I will suspend my campaign for president.”

Castro was mayor of San Antonio for five years before joining the Obama administration. He kicked off his campaign last January at a rally in his hometown.

“When my grandmother got here almost a hundred years ago, I’m sure she never could have imagined that just two generations later, one of her grandsons would be serving as a member of the United States Congress and the other would be standing with you here today to say these words: I am a candidate for President of the United States of America,” Castro said.

Castro, the only Latino candidate to run this cycle, struggled to maintain consistent financial viability among a crowded pool of candidates. Castro was forced to shrink his campaign team in November, and failed to qualify for the November and December debate due to low funds and polling.

Castro, who ran a campaign centered around helping marginalized people with issues such as immigration, policing, and housing, gave his praise to Sen. Elizabeth Warren in November.

“She has got a great team over there. She is fantastic,” Castro said in November. “I think she has done a very impressive job on the campaign trail. … I think right now she is doing a fantastic job of fusing her biography… with her policies.”