Another Democrat Out As Lincoln Chafee Ends His Presidential Campaign

Last updated on September 25th, 2023 at 01:48 pm

And then there were three. Lincoln Chafee abruptly ended his campaign for the Democratic nomination while addressing the DNC’s Women’s Leadership Forum today.

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Chafee said, “Now, as you may know, I’ve been campaigning on a platform of prosperity for peace, but after much thought I’ve decided to end my campaign for president today. But I would like to this opportunity one last time to advocate for a chance be given to peace.”

Chafee used his speech to talk about peace and the Republican preference for war, “Ladies and gentlemen from what I’ve heard none of the Republicans running for president want to understand anything about the Middle East and North Africa. Instead, they prefer more bellicosity, more saber rattling, more blind macho posturing…We should be different. Democrats should insist on learning from the lessons of Vietnam. It all could have been averted.”

Former Sen. Chafee never had much of a campaign operation. He was polling at less than one percent. What the exits of Chafee and Jim Webb do for the Democratic race is that they remove some clutter from the debates.

There are three remaining candidates for the Democratic nomination. Martin O’Malley is having difficulty getting above 5% in any poll, so unless something dramatic changes, it is only a matter of time until he too is out of the Democratic race.

Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Sec. of State Hillary Clinton are moving closer to being able to debate each other one on one. Clinton and Sanders demonstrated at the first Democratic debate that policy-oriented debates can be entertaining.

As for Lincoln Chafee, he seemed to be enjoying himself on the national debate stage, but as the nation moves towards the primaries and caucuses, it is time for long shot candidates to say their goodbyes and move on.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association