Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina has suspended her campaign one day after a poor showing in New Hampshire.
“While I suspend my candidacy today, I will continue to travel this country and fight for those Americans who refuse to settle for the way things are and a status quo that no longer works for them,” she said Wednesday in a statement released by her campaign.
{mosads}As the only female GOP candidate, Fiorina also included a message for young women to “not let others define you” and warning them that feminism doesn’t mean that that women have to vote “a certain way.”
“Feminism doesn’t shut down conversations or threaten women. It is not about ideology. It is not a weapon to wield against your political opponent,” she said.
“A feminist is a woman who lives the life she chooses and uses all her God-given gifts. And always remember that a leader is not born, but made.”
Fiorina’s candidacy maintained a significant focus on attacking Democrat Hillary Clinton, the only other female in the race. She sharply criticized Clinton’s record as secretary of State and called on her to face prosecution repeatedly during debates.
The former Hewlett-Packard executive finished in seventh place in Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary with just 4 percent of the vote. She had initially vowed to press on, but changed her mind on Wednesday.
The poor showing in New Hampshire essentially guaranteed that she’d miss out entirely on qualifying for Saturday’s GOP debate. She also failed to qualify for the ABC News debate earlier this month.
With the field winnowing, news organizations have gotten rid of the undercard debates, leaving fewer slots on stage for the once sprawling field.
She began the race with negligible name recognition and was instantly relegated to undercard debates. But a lauded performance in the August Fox News debate catapulted her onto the main stage and as high as second place in the polls in New Hamsphire, before her candidacy fell back down to Earth.
Fellow GOP candidate Chris Christie on Tuesday told supporters he’d go home to take a “deep breath” after finishing just one slot ahead of Fiorina. But while he’s expected to end his campaign Wednesday, he has not yet done so officially.
– Updated at 3:29 p.m.