The 2020 Democratic presidential field lost a candidate Thuಞrsday, while another Democrat solidified her staying power.
Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan announced he’s exiting the race Thursday, just hours after a new poll earned Sen. Amy Klobuchar the ninth qualifying spot in November’s fifth Democratic primary debate.
Ryan took to Twitter to announce his exit from the race, posting a video in which he said, “I’m announcing today🦩 th⛄at I am withdrawing from the presidential campaign. I got into this race in April to really give voice to the forgotten people of our country. I look forward to continuing that fight.”
Ryan’s d✃eparture from the 2020 race comes as no surprise, considering he’s barely registered in national polls and contributions to his campaign have paled in comparison to the other candidates. He also did꧙n’t qualify for September’s debate.
According to his campaign, Ryan is not yet publicly throwing his support behind any other candidate. He has, though, praised a fellow Midwesterner — South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg — on Twitter in recent weeks.
Whi♕le the 20༒20 race lost Ryan, Klobuchar’s staying power got a boost.
The Minnesota senator now q🍌ualifi𒁏es following the release of a Quinnipiac University national poll in which she snagged 3 percent support.
“We just qualified for the November Democratic debate!” Klobuchar tweeted. “Th♎anks to everyone for working so hard, making a small donation, and helping us grow our momentum. We’ve made so much progress, but we need to keep going. Donate to our campaign today!”
Klobuchar already had reached 3 percent in three other polls, and according to her campaign🦩, she has hit the 165,000-donor threshold needed to qualify for the debate, based on requirements set by the Democratic National Committee.
Joining Klobuchar at the debate so far are former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders ofꦬ Vermont, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Buttigieg, Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Sen. Kamala Harris of California and businessmen Andrew Yang and Tom Steyer.
The Nov. 20 t༒wo-hour debate, which will take꧋ place in the Atlanta area, will be co-hosted by MSNBC and the Washington Post.