On Wednesday, April 8 Bernie Sanders officially announced to his followers that he would be dropping out of the presidential race for the 2020 election. 

In a conference call with his staff, he said, “I cannot in good conscience continue to mount a campaign that cannot win and which would interfere with the important work required of all of us in this difficult hour,” adding that “we are now some 300 delegates behind Vice President Biden, and the path toward victory is virtually impossible.”

In the beginning of the primaries, Sanders’ success seemed plausible as he had a strong start, winning in states such as New Hampshire, Nevada, Colorado and California. However, as the primaries continued, he failed to gain support from Alabama, the Carolinas, Mississippi, Virginia, Florida, Texas, and Michigan.

With Sanders’ withdrawal, it is now guaranteed that the 2020 election will be between candidate Joe Biden and president Donald Trump.

The results of the Primaries are a “sharp blow to progressives”, according to Gregory Krieg, Ryan Nobles and Annie Grayer, writers for CNN.

In regards to Sanders’ decision, Biden made a statement saying, “to your supporters, I make the same commitment; I see you, I hear you, and I understand the urgency of what it is we have to get done in this country.”

While Sanders did not directly endorse Biden, Sanders said that Biden is “a very decent man, who I will work with to move our progressive ideas forward.”

According to Sydney Ember, writer for the NY Times, Sanders’ failure may be “because many voters rejected Mr. Sanders’ policy agenda as too far to the left and prohibitively expansive, and were convinced that Mr. Biden had the best chance to beat Mr. Trump in November.”

While many are disappointed in Sanders’ decision, Sanders finished his announcement with a positive note, saying “while this campaign is coming to an end, our movement is not.”