Ben Carson on Monday vowed to forge ahead with his presidential campaign despite critics who say securing the Republican nomination is impossible.
“On the day before the Super Tuesday contests — so far only four states have had their say in this election and just five percent of delegates have been assigned — I offer the people a different choice from the other candidates, one they deserve to make for themselves, as they support the principles in which they really believe,” he wrote in an op-ed for Fox News.
{mosads}“That is why I won’t listen as the pundits and politicians decree from on high,” Carson continued. “I refuse to play by Washington’s political rule book, or subjugate myself to the whims of the political class.
“It is a fundamentally undemocratic response to insinuate that people should be stripped of their choice ‘for the good of the party.’ That’s why I’ve vowed to continue our campaign as long as we have revenue and support, until the people have decided.”
Carson also derided the media for influencing voters by predicting the ultimate fortunes of candidates like himself.
“Unfortunately, these pundits have gotten too lost in the gladiatorial spectacle to see what truly matters: the will of ‘We the People,’” the retired neurosurgeon said.
“With every call to drop out, pundits and political operatives salivating over polling percentages — as though the people they represent were commodities to be bought and bartered in the backrooms of D.C.’s exclusive clubs. This mentality is driving voters away from the political system they have so long supported.”
Carson’s remarks come one day before Super Tuesday, where 12 states and U.S. territories vote in the biggest day of the GOP presidential primary so far.
He currently ranks last in voter support nationwide, trailing Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump by about 27 points in the latest RealClearPolitics average of polls.