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Washington Gov. Jay Inslee says he’s ending presidential bid

Aug 21, 2019 | 7:18 PM

OLYMPIA, Wash. — Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is ending his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Inslee announced his decision Wednesday night on MSNBC, saying that it’s become clear he won’t win. He did not say whether he intended to seek a third term as governor.

While he had qualified for the first two presidential debates this summer, Inslee struggled to gain traction in the crowded Democratic field and was falling short of the requirements needed to appear on two high-profile stages next month: the third DNC debate in Houston and a CNN town hall focused on climate change, Inslee’s key issue.

Inslee recently hit one of the markers, 130,000 unique donors. But he had yet to reach 2% in any poll, and he would have needed that level of support in four qualifying polls.