John Kasich To Suspend Campaign, Trump Secures Republican Nomination


After a crushing defeat in Indiana last night, Ohio Governor John Kasich will suspend his campaign later today, dropping out of the Republican presidential primary. According to NBC News, a senior campaign adviser has confirmed that Kasich will drop out of the race after delivering a statement tonight at 5 p.m. Eastern.

John Kasich’s exit from the presidential race comes after canceling a scheduled campaign event earlier today, and announcing that he will deliver an address later this evening. Speculation that Kasich would drop out of the Republican race started swirling late last night after Ted Cruz – the Republican candidate in second place – suspended his campaign, ending his run for the Republican presidential nomination.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich will follow suit today, suspending his campaign and dropping out of the Republican presidential race, leaving Donald Trump as the Republican presidential nominee. Kasich finished a distant third in last night’s Indiana primary, and after Ted Cruz dropped out of the race, Kasich assured supporters that he was in it for the long haul — Cruz’s exit was part of his plan, Kasich said.

But according to NBC News and CNN, Republican presidential candidate John Kasich will suspend his campaign later tonight as the Republican National Committee begins to rally around presidential nominee Donald Trump. Pundits on both sides of the political spectrum had been speculating that Kasich would drop out — or that he should drop out — after the Ohio Governor failed to win any significant victories in the Republican primary, securing a win in his home state, but coming in second or third in the remaining Republican presidential primary elections.

John Kasich drops out after running a race characterized as a long shot for the Ohio Governor, trailing behind Republican frontrunner Donald Trump and second place finisher Ted Cruz. The Kasich campaign had hoped to force a contested convention this summer, which the Ohio Governor admitted was his only shot at winning the Republican Presidential nomination.

After Donald Trump’s landslide victory in last night’s Indiana primary, Texas senator Ted Cruz suspended his campaign, dropping out of the Republican presidential race after running a tough and hard-fought battle against Trump. Kasich and Cruz attempted to form an alliance against Trump, but the plan was short lived, with both candidates eventually stepping away from the agreement.

John Kasich drops out of the Republican presidential race, leaving only Donald Trump standing as the Republican presidential nominee. Despite releasing a Star Wars-themed campaign ad this morning, John Kasich’s senior advisers have confirmed that he will officially suspend his campaign during a speech this evening. Kasich’s withdrawal comes as little surprise to Republican commentators, who predicted last night that Kasich would have a tough choice ahead of him after Ted Cruz bowed out of the race.

Ohio Governor John Kasich dropped out of the Republican presidential race after hanging on for months, surviving a packed Republican presidential field and pushing on to the very end, outlasting party favorites like Chris Christie, Marco Rubio, Carly Fiorina, and finally Ted Cruz.

Kasich had only a small fraction of the delegates needed to secure the Republican presidential nomination, and despite pledges to stay in till the end, he will suspend his campaign today and drop out of the Republican race.

After Kasich drops out tonight, it will be official: New York billionaire Donald Trump will be the Republican presidential candidate running against either Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders this November. It remains to be seen, however, whether the Republican establishment will rally around Trump, who has been a divisive figure in the Republican Party, frequently butting heads with party leaders and pundits alike.

[Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images]

Share this article: John Kasich To Suspend Campaign, Trump Secures Republican Nomination
More from Inquisitr