Ted Cruz suspended his campaign on Tuesday after a crushing defeat in Indiana’s primary, leaving the way clear for Donald Trump to become the Republican nominee for president.
The Texas senator, who rose to fame with his quixotic 17-day attempt to shut down the government, was the last remaining competitor to Trump with a clear shot at the nomination.
However, after staking his campaign on a win in Indiana, Cruz suffered an overwhelming loss in the Hoosier State.
In an inclusive victory speech in which he tried to heal some of the open wounds of the past year and begin the long and very difficult process of unifying the party, Trump had kind words for his vanquished rival.
“I don’t know if he likes me or doesn’t like me,” he said of the senator for Texas. “But he is one hell of a competitor. He has an amazing future.”
In the Democratic race, Bernie Sanders pulled off a shock victory, beating Hillary Clinton by 52.7% to 47.3%, with 93% reporting.
“The Clinton campaign thinks this campaign is over,” he said. “They’re wrong.”
Cruz leaves the Republican race having won 565 delegates and 11 states, including the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses in January. Despite successfully building a strong base among evangelicals and social conservatives, he was unable to expand his following and to pivot to the unpredictable Trump, who repeatedly bashed him as “Lyin’ Ted”.
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