(CNN) — Rick Perry today announced he is suspending his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination and endorsing Newt Gingrich.
Speaking at a news conference in Charleston, South Carolina, Perry said there was “no viable path forward” for his campaign. He said Gingrich has the “heart of a conservative reformer.”
The move comes two days before the South Carolina primary and hours before the final debate ahead of the voting, which will take place tonight and be broadcast on CNN.
The campaigns of Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum reached out to the Perry campaign Thursday morning in an “aggressive effort” to get his endorsement, according to a source close to Perry.
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Perry placed fifth in Iowa and last in New Hampshire — a state in which he did not actively compete — and had said he would launch a bid to win in South Carolina.
“South Carolinians are looking for a conservative candidate that will get this country back working again and I am it,” Perry told CNN last week.
On Wednesday, CNN asked Perry about a poll that showed him with only 6% support among likely voters in the South Carolina primary.
He insisted he was continuing with the effort to have a strong showing in the state.
“We’re convinced that that’s our goal, so the idea that we’re going to do anything else, other than try to impact this election is — that’s why we got in it. We didn’t get in it because it was our purpose in life to be the president of the United States. We did it because it was our purpose to serve this country, and that’s what we’ve been called for, and that’s what we’re going to continue doing.”
When Perry entered the race in August, he immediately did well in the polls. But a series of gaffes, particularly at debates against his rivals, sent his support plummeting.
