U.S. Senate candidate Mike Johnston said Tuesday he is suspending his campaign.
Johnston, a 44-year-old former state senator, led the crowded Democratic field this year in fundraising and was a top-tier candidate in the polls. But former Gov. John Hickenlooper’s decision to run left him with a questionable path to victory in next year’s Democratic Senate primary.
“I think we had a very strong path to win this race before the governor got in and I think it was to give a positive vision of what we wanted to accomplish in the state and country,” Johnston said in an interview. “I think his entrance required this to be a very different kind of race and required a negative race that’s not one that matches my values and how I would want to lead.”
Johnston says he spent time with his family over the Labor Day weekend, looked ahead at the Senate race, and determined only an expensive and ugly campaign could result in victory.
“That’s not who I am,” he said. “I think no race is worth conceding victory to a brand of broken politics that I’ve spent my life trying to change. I think that primary process would break a lot of long-standing relationships in the state and would only increase the chances that a battered Democratic nominee would help (Sen. Cory) Gardner win and help (Senate Majority Leader Mitch) McConnell stay in power in the U.S. Senate.”
Johnston said he isn’t endorsing a candidate in the Senate race at this time. He also said he doesn’t know what’s next for his own career, but hinted at a desire to remain in politics.
“Mike Johnston is a friend, a tremendous public servant and a great Coloradan,” Hickenlooper said in a statement. “He’s always put the good of the state and indeed country first. I know he will continue to help Colorado do great things going forward.”
It is the second time in as many years that Johnston’s well-funded runs for office have been cut short by better-known Democratic opponents. Last year, he ran for governor, only to lose the Democratic primary to Jared Polis.
“I guess it’s surprising that he is the first to drop out in the face of Hickenlooper jumping in, but the signals of national party support for Hickenlooper are pretty hard to ignore,” said Seth Masket, a political science professor at the University of Denver. “Everything we know about the polling and the way that the money seems to be flowing suggests that Hickenlooper will have a huge number of advantages in the primary. I think the prospects for Johnston prevailing were not great.”
Eleven candidates remain in the Democratic race to take on Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Yuma, next year. Hickenlooper leads the pack in the latest polls, with former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff in second and several other candidates competing for top-tier positions.
A Public Policy Polling survey of 509 likely Colorado Democratic voters released Tuesday showed Hickenlooper with 60 percent support, Romanoff with 9 percent and Johnston with 3 percent. The survey from left-leaning PPP had a 4.3 percent margin of error and was paid for by 314 Action, a political action committee supporting Hickenlooper’s candidacy.
