Miami Mayor Francis Suarez is first GOP presidential hopeful to drop out of the 2024 race

After only two months of campaigning, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez suspended his presidential campaign on Tuesday, becoming the first of the nearly dozen Republican White House hopefuls to exit the race.

Suarez's longshot bid suffered a major blow when he failed to qualify for the first Republican presidential debate in the race for the 2024 nomination in Milwaukee last week.

Suarez, the only Hispanic GOP candidate, released a lengthy statement on X, formerly Twitter, where he spoke of his experiences on the campaign trail but didn't give a reason as to why he suspended his campaign.

"Running for President of the United States has been one of the greatest honors of my life," Suarez wrote. "While I have decided to suspend my campaign for President, my commitment to making this a better nation for every American remains."

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From the start, Suarez struggled to gain traction. He was the third wheel Florida Republican running against two better-known rivals from his home state: the leading candidate in the Republican primary, former President Donald Trump, and Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Because of this, Suarez barely registered in either national or individual state polls. Suarez was excluded from the Republican debate stage since the Republican National Committee (RNC) qualifying rules required at least 1% in three national polls or a mix of national and early-state polls between July 1 and Aug. 21, and a minimum of 40,000 donors with 200 in 20 or more states.

The RNC concluded Suarez had not met the criteria and left him out of the Fox News-hosted encounter.

“I agree that if you can’t meet the minimum thresholds, you shouldn’t be trying to take the time involved away from being productive,” Suarez said to reporters at the Iowa State Fair earlier this month.

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A Democratic National Committee spokesperson, Ammar Moussa, wrote in a statement after Suarez suspended his campaign: "One fewer Republican who wants to ban abortion nationwide. Too bad the rest of the field is just as extreme. Good riddance."

Suarez's campaign was focused on his work in Miami and his re-election in a city once known as a Democratic blue-dominant area. Suarez had made a few campaign trips, including three to Iowa and two to New Hampshire since his campaign launch in mid-June.

"I look forward to keeping in touch with the other Republican presidential candidates and doing what I can to make sure our party puts forward a strong nominee who can inspire and unify the country, renew Americans’ trust in our institutions and in each other, and win," Suarez wrote in his post.

Stephany Matat is a politics reporter for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY-Florida network. Reach her at smatat@pbpost.com. Support local journalism: Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miami Mayor Francis Suarez is first Republican to exit presidential race