- Title: Former U.S. Housing Secretary Castro drops out of 2020 presidential race
- Date: 2nd January 2020
- Summary: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES (APRIL 1, 2019) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, JULIAN CASTRO, SAYING: "You know, I wasn't born a frontrunner; I didn't grow up a frontrunner. There are a lot of people in this country that don't feel like a frontrunner right now. I'm going to go talk to them."
- Embargoed: 16th January 2020 15:01
- Keywords: 2020 presidential race Castro drops out Democratic presidential race Julian Castro
- Location: WASHINGTON, D.C. + MIAMI, FLORIDA + SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS + WESTERVILLE, OHIO, UNITED STATES / INTERNET
- City: WASHINGTON, D.C. + MIAMI, FLORIDA + SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS + WESTERVILLE, OHIO, UNITED STATES / INTERNET
- Country: USA
- Topics: Government/Politics,Elections/Voting
- Reuters ID: LVA003BUHCX8N
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Julian Castro, the grandson of a Mexican immigrant who became San Antonio mayor and a U.S. housing secretary, suspended his 2020 Democratic presidential race on Thursday (January 2) after a candidacy overshadowed by more famous liberals.
"It's with profound gratitude to all of our supporters that I suspend my campaign for president today," Castro wrote in a Twitter post.
The charisma and assertiveness that helped make Castro a rising star in the Democratic Party did not translate into enough support to compete against better-known U.S. senators, including progressive powerhouses Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.
The other Texan in the race for the party's nomination, former U.S. Representative Beto O'Rourke, also siphoned some attention from Castro in the early days of his campaign before enthusiasm started to wane.
Castro, 45, championed immigrant rights and was a strong critic of Republican President Donald Trump.
He did not flinch from criticizing his fellow Democrats either, notably going after former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, the early front-runner among Democrats, during a September debate.
(Production: Vanessa Johnston) - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2020. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None