in Washington, DC — Spiritual leader and self-help author Marianne Williamson declared her withdrawal from the Democratic primary contest to Joe Biden on Wednesday.
The 71-year-old, who had previously served as Oprah Winfrey's spiritual adviser, "had to decide whether now is the time for a dignified exit or continue on our campaign journey." Last month, after receiving just 5,000 votes in New Hampshire's primary, she considered terminating her candidacy.
Williamson chose to run in two additional primaries after receiving only 2% of the vote in South Carolina and perhaps 3% in Nevada.
"I hope future candidates will take what works for them, drinking from the well of information we prepared," Williamson wrote in her announcement of her bid's closure. "The ideas that my team and I put forward are fantastic, and it will give me joy to see them carried forward in future campaigns and candidates."
The only well-known Democrat still in the race is Minnesota Representative Dean Phillips. Joe Biden has already won comfortably in South Carolina and Nevada and even in New Hampshire (where he was not officially on the ballot) thanks to a write-in campaign organized by his friends.
The Democratic primary is now firmly under Biden's control. As a sitting president, that's not surprising, but it does go against Biden's dismal job approval ratings over the years and surveys suggesting that the majority of Americans, including Democrats, do not want him to run again.
While announcing the establishment of the Department of Peace and urging a "moral uprising" against then-President Trump, Williamson grabbed global news during his 2020 presidential campaign. Additionally, she stated that Black Americans should get substantial financial reparations from the federal government to make up for centuries of prejudice and enslavement.
In her second run for the presidency, she maintained her unconventional campaign strategy and offered many of the same policies. However, from the very beginning of her attempt, she had a hard time raising funds and was beset by staff departures.
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