Republican Carly Fiorina quits race for US presidency

The lone female candidate vying for the Republican nomination for US president has dropped out of the race, a day after being placed seventh in the crowded New Hampshire primary contest.  

In a statement posted on Facebook on Wednesday, Carly Fiorina, the former chief executive of the computer company Hewlett-Packard, said she was suspending her campaign.

“While I suspend my candidacy today, I will continue to travel this country and fight for those Americans who refuse to settle for the way things are and a status quo that no longer works for them,” Fiorina said, echoing the populist message of several candidates. 

“To young girls and women across the country, I say: do not let others define you. Do not listen to anyone who says you have to vote a certain way or for a certain candidate because you’re a woman,” she added.

The Reuters news agency, citing a senior campaign staff member, reported on Wednesday that New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was also suspending his campaign. On Wednesday afternoon local time, Christie, who placed sixth in New Hampshire, had yet to make an official announcement.

Fiorina only managed to garner 4 percent of the total votes in the New Hampshire primary on Tuesday. Last week, she was also seventh in the caucus in Iowa, with less than 2 percent support.    

Fiorina’s candidacy briefly caught media attention after a strong debate performance last September, but it quickly fizzled out under intense attack by her opponents, including the leading candidate Donald Trump, who won the New Hampshire primary.

One of her most memorable moments was when she called Trump an “entertainer”, and confronted the New York real estate businessman.

In 2010, Fiorina also sought public office when she ran for a US Senate seat in California. But she lost the race to the incumbent Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer.