“Today is a moment of truth… the truth is the path has narrowed to a close, for our candidacy, if not for our cause,” the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana said.

“So we must recognise that at this point in the race the best way to keep faith with those goals and ideals is to step aside and help bring our party and our country together. So tonight, I am making the difficult decision to suspend my campaign for the presidency.”

Buttigieg began the US primary season on a hot streak, winning in Iowa and coming in second at New Hampshire. But the flame that once ignited the Maltese-American’s presidential campaign quickly burnt out after it was clear that Buttigieg was performing poorly with voters of colour, resulting in poor showings in Nevada and South Carolina.

Buttigieg was the first openly gay man to launch a successful campaign for president and became the first gay candidate to earn primary delegates for a major party’s presidential nomination. His decision to drop out of the race comes just days before Super Tuesday – a crucial day in the lead up to the presidential race where fourteen state primaries and the American Samoa caucuses will take place.

News of Mayor Pete’s decision came as a shock to many and also prompted a response from US President Donal Trump, who took his chance to take another dig at the democratic party.

Pete Buttigieg is OUT. All of his SuperTuesday votes will go to Sleepy Joe Biden. Great timing. This is the REAL beginning of the Dems taking Bernie out of play – NO NOMINATION, AGAIN!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 1, 2020

What did you make of Mayor Pete’s run at US President? Let us know in the comments below