Bowing out
January 16, 2012
Former Utah governor John Huntsman on Monday ended his faltering bid to become the Republican candidate in the US presidential elections, calling upon supporters to unite behind Mitt Romney.
"Today, I am suspending my campaign for the presidency. I believe it is now time for our party to unite around the candidate best equipped to defeat Barack Obama," he told supporters in South Carolina, where primary balloting is set to take place later this week.
"Despite our differences and the space between us on some of the issues, I believe that candidate is governor Mitt Romney."
Huntsman, a former ambassador to China who was seen as the most moderate of the candidates, had been running in last place ahead of the vote.
Conservative vote split
Romney is the favorite to win the race to take on President Obama in November, with support divided for the more conservative alternatives Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum and Rick Perry.
Polls show that Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, has a comfortable lead heading into Saturday's vote - despite concerns about his Mormon faith in the strongly Christian state.
The candidates faced a busy week of campaigning, with national televised debates on Monday and Thursday. In the last three decades, no Republican candidate has been nominated for the party without winning in South Carolina.
The candidate will not be officially named until the Republican National Convention in September, although it may become clear who it will be earlier than that.
Author: Richard Connor (AP, Reuters)
Editor: Michael Lawton