After a projected Donald Trump sweep in Indiana was announced by the major TV networks on Tuesday night, reports began to surface that Ted Cruz would be ending his campaign.
Just in: @TedCruz is ending his presidential campaign, campaign manager Jeff Roe tells me.
— Patrick Svitek (@PatrickSvitek) May 4, 2016
Cruz confirmed as much in a speech on Tuesday night, saying that while he is suspending his campaign, “I am not suspending our fight for liberty. I am not suspending our fight to defend the Constitution. To defend the Judeo-Christian values that built America. Our movement will continue.” Here’s the moment in his speech when he announced it was over:
Going into Tuesday, Cruz had no chance of securing a majority of delegates and a win on the first ballot at the Republican convention in Cleveland in July. After Trump’s decisive win in Indiana, even that goal appeared unrealistic. Trump is now considered to be the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus tweeted as much:
.@realDonaldTrump will be presumtive @GOP nominee, we all need to unite and focus on defeating @HillaryClinton #NeverClinton
— Reince Priebus (@Reince) May 4, 2016