Long-shot Republican candidate Perry Johnson drops out of White House race

FILE PHOTO: Republican presidential candidate and businessman Perry Johnson speaks at the New Hampshire Republican Party's First in the Nation Leadership Summit in Nashua, New Hampshire, U.S., October 13, 2023. REUTERS/Brian Snyder/ File Photo

(Reuters) - Perry Johnson, a businessman and long-shot for the Republican presidential nomination, dropped out of the 2024 White House race on Friday.

Johnson failed to qualify for the two Republican presidential debates held so far this year because of a lack of donors and negligible support in polls. He tried to run for Michigan governor last year but was disqualified after his campaign filed invalid nominating signatures.

"With no opportunity to share my vision on the debate stage, I have decided at this time suspending my campaign is the right thing to do," Johnson, 75, wrote in a message to supporters.

"I am 100% committed to helping Republicans win across the country in 2024," Johnson added.

Another long-shot contender, former Texas congressman Will Hurd, dropped out of the Republican nominating race on Oct. 9.

Former Republican President Donald Trump remains the runaway frontrunner to become the party's White House standard-bearer next year.

Trump is about 40 percentage points ahead of his nearest rivals - Florida's governor Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley - in polls of likely Republican voters.

(Reporting by Tim Reid; editing by Rod Nickel)