WASHINGTON
(AP) — Sen. Bernie Sanders, who saw his once strong lead in the
Democratic primary evaporate as the party’s establishment lined swiftly
up behind rival Joe Biden, ended his presidential bid on Wednesday, an
acknowledgment that the former vice president is too far ahead for him
to have any reasonable hope of catching up.

The
Vermont senator’s announcement makes Biden the presumptive Democratic
nominee to challenge President Donald Trump in November.

Sanders plans to talk to his supporters later Wednesday.

Sanders initially exceeded sky-high expectations about his ability to recreate the magic of his 2016 presidential bid, and even overcame a heart attack last October
on the campaign trail. But he found himself unable to convert
unwavering support from progressives into a viable path to the
nomination amid “electability” fears fueled by questions about whether
his democratic socialist ideology would be palatable to general election
voters.ADVERTISEMENT

The
78-year-old senator began his latest White House bid facing questions
about whether he could win back the supporters who chose him four years
ago as an insurgent alternative to the party establishment’s choice,
Hillary Clinton. Despite winning 22 states in 2016, there were no
guarantees he’d be a major presidential contender this cycle, especially
as the race’s oldest candidate.

Sanders,
though, used strong polling and solid fundraising — collected almost
entirely from small donations made online — to more than quiet early
doubters. Like the first time, he attracted widespread support from
young voters and was able to make new inroads within the Hispanic
community, even as his appeal with African Americans remained small.

Sanders
amassed the most votes in Iowa and New Hampshire, which opened primary
voting, and cruised to an easy victory in Nevada — seemingly leaving him
well positioned to sprint to the Democratic nomination while a deeply
crowded and divided field of alternatives sunk around him.

But
a crucial endorsement of Biden by influential South Carolina Rep. Jim
Clyburn, and a subsequent, larger-than-expected victory in South
Carolina, propelled the former vice president into Super Tuesday, when
he won 10 of 14 states.

In
a matter of days, his top former Democratic rivals lined up and
announced their endorsement of Biden. The former vice president’s
campaign had appeared on the brink of collapse after New Hampshire but
found new life as the rest of the party’s more moderate establishment
coalesced around him as an alternative to Sanders.

Things
only got worse the following week when Sanders lost Michigan, where he
had campaigned hard and upset Clinton in 2016. He was also beaten in
Missouri, Mississippi and Idaho the same night and the results were so
decisive that Sanders headed to Vermont without speaking to the media.

Sanders
had scheduled a rally in Ohio but canceled it amid fears about the
spread of coronavirus — and the outbreak kept him home as his campaign
appeared unsure of its next move. The senator addressed reporters the
following day, but also sounded like a candidate who already knew he’d
been beaten.

“While our campaign has won the ideological debate, we are losing the debate over electability,” Sanders said then.

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