John Kasich Suspends Presidential Campaign, Clearing Path For Donald Trump

Update: 5:25 p.m.: An emotional John Kasich announced that he’s ending his campaign in a press conference in Columbus, OH on Wednesday night. "I have always said that the Lord has a purpose for me as he has for everyone," Kasich said in the announcement. "As I suspend my campaign today, I have renewed faith, deeper faith, that the Lord will…show me the purpose of my life.” This story was originally published at 12:12 p.m. Republican presidential candidate John Kasich will suspend his campaign, CNBC reported on Wednesday, fully clearing the way for Donald Trump to become the GOP nominee. The Ohio governor's decision comes less than 24 hours after second-place Republican candidate Ted Cruz ended his own bid. After the withdrawal of Cruz from the race, Kasich was the last remaining challenger to front-runner Trump, who has been sweeping Republican primaries throughout the election cycle. Cruz dropped his bid after a loss to Trump in Indiana, a state that the Texas senator has hoped to win. The Kasich campaign flatly denied rumors that the Ohio governor would withdraw from the race in a Facebook post on Tuesday night. “Tonight’s results are not going to alter Gov. Kasich’s campaign plans. Our strategy has been and continues to be one that involves winning the nomination at an open convention,” the post stated. But on Wednesday, multiple outlets, including Politico and MSNBC, reported that his campaign is set to end. In recent weeks, Kasich and rival Cruz had joined forces in an attempt to deny Trump the 1,237 delegates necessary for an automatic nomination. After his win in Indiana, Trump has 1,007 delegates. Kasich, who so far has won only his own home state of Ohio, has only 153 delegates to his name.