U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet ended his presidential campaign Tuesday night after early primary election results from New Hampshire showed him earning less than 1%.
Bennet and his campaign team spent a lot of time in New Hampshire over the past few months, holding more than 50 town halls and attending events like a reproductive rights rally on Monday.
“Celebrity politics creates real challenges, but we’ve tried to overcome that by campaigning all across New Hampshire in the old fashioned way,” Bennet said early on Tuesday in Manchester.
The Colorado Democrat said he was hopeful he could place third or fourth in a state like New Hampshire given his success in a swing state like Colorado.
His agenda included moderate policies compared with other Democratic candidates in areas like health care. He favored an alternative approach that allows people to keep their private insurance while making a government plan available to anyone who preferred it.
“We built the campaign so we would make it until New Hampshire made up their mind,” Bennet said. “It’s been a great privilege for me and my family to spend the time that we have in New Hampshire.”
I love our country. I love the idea of democracy. And I want to pass it on to the next generation.
— Michael Bennet (@MichaelBennet) February 12, 2020
I feel nothing but joy tonight as we conclude this campaign and this chapter.
Tonight wasnt our night. But New Hampshire, you may see me once again.
Bennet previously served as superintendent of Denver Public Schools, and proposed strong education policy in his Real Deal campaign agenda, ideas that remaining Democratic candidates may adopt moving forward.
“One way or another, whether this goes forward or it doesn’t go forward, I’m going to keep fighting for our democracy,” Bennet said Tuesday before results began trickling in. He also emphasized that any of the Democratic candidates running will be better than President Donald Trump.
Bennet and other U.S. senators introduced new legislation Tuesday morning that would put the United States on track to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, and he is working on other legislation that would conserve land in Colorado for recreation and protect ecosystems.
In a speech late Tuesday, Bennet said, “I think it’s fitting for us to end the campaign tonight.”
But he ended by saying, “New Hampshire, you may see me once again.”
American University student Sarah Duval contributed to this report.
Emily Hayes is a graduate student at American University in Washington, D.C., and an intern for The Durango Herald.
.@MichaelBennet: "Tonight is not going to be out night...I think it's fitting for us to end the campaign tonight."
— CSPAN (@cspan) February 12, 2020
Full video here: https://t.co/v1CiAIzzRn #NHpolitics #fitn pic.twitter.com/9ATUWyU7ys
