After careful analysis of the DFL gubernatorial endorsement, I have decided to end my campaign for Governor of Minnesota.
Two important facts weighed heavily in my decision: 1) That the endorsement of Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher would pit two women against each other in the primary, and 2) with two self-financed and well-funded male candidates, the resulting struggle would make it extremely difficult to raise sufficient funds for an effective campaign.
Since the day I entered this campaign I always believed there was a path to victory. Today, that path is not clear. What is clear is that if I stayed in the race I could hurt the chances of a woman surviving the primary. Because this is the first time in more than a century of effort that a woman has come this far, I don't want to be any part of keeping us from achieving this important milestone for Minnesota women.
While I am truly sorry the campaign didn't work out, I have no regrets. I ran because I believe at this difficult time in Minnesota's history my leadership and values would have been good for all Minnesotans, including the least among us.
I will be forever grateful for your support and friendship. In my years as a public servant in Minnesota, nothing I have done has touched me more than your loyalty to my campaign for Governor.
When I started this campaign, I used a quote from Minnesota's first Governor, Henry Hastings Sibley, to express my most basic value as a candidate. As I end this campaign, I still believe it to be true:
"I have no object and no interest which are not inseparably bound up with the welfare of the state."
Thank you.
Susan Gaertner
