Dole Drops Out (posted October 20, 1999)

News organizations are reporting that presidential candidate Elizabeth Dole is dropping out of the campaign. Unable to gain traction against frontrunner George W. Bush and with major difficulty raising money, Dole is conceding that her candidacy was going nowhere and that Bush, Steve Forbes, and John McCain all have advantages over her.

Dole's big problem is that she peaked in January when she announced she was leaving the Red Cross to think about running for president. With the novelty of her famous name, years of service, and being female, Dole attracted a lot of coverage centering on the question of whether a female Republican could be elected president.

Since that time, however, Dole has had organizational problems, fundraising difficulties, and problems distinguishing herself from the rest of the field. Never having run for office before, it was a big jump to start her first race at the presidential level. This problem was compounded when she tried to position herself as a moderate Republican in order to separate herself from the right wing, only to find the moderate turf firmly under the control of Bush. Never able to build on her initial momentum, she is dropping out.

While she will not be president, she almost certainly will be on the short list for vice presidential candidates or in line for a major Cabinet position.