Underdog Republican presidential candidate Ryan Binkley drops out, endorses Trump

Former Rebublican presidential candidate Ryan Binkley talks with a woman at a anti-eminent domain rally in the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines in January. Binkley dropped out of the presidential race on Tuesday and endorsed former President Donald Trump by Tannen Maury/UPI

Feb. 27 (UPI) — Texas pastor and long-shot Republican presidential candidate Ryan Binkley officially ended his race for the White House and endorsed his political party’s favored candidate for the nomination, former President Donald Trump.

Binkley thanked his supporters and more than 80,000 financial backers — “who helped share my vision” — on social media before offering Trump his “unwavering support” as the election continues.

“Throughout my campaign, I have seen our party struggle to find a place for a new vision while weighing the corrupt allegations and indictments against President Trump,” Binkley said on X. “He will need everyone’s support, and he will have mine moving forward.”

The Tuesday announcement by Binkley comes the day of the Michigan primary election that is projected to sway in Trump’s favor.

Ryan Binkley speaks at the 2023 Republican Party of Iowa Lincoln Dinner in Des Moines in July. A pastor and millionaire, Binkley told Politico after the New Hampshire primary that “God would just have to speak to me and tell me to end it.” File Photo by Tannen Maury/UPI Tannen Maury/UPI

As a candidate, Binkley said he “thinks” his campaign got ballot access in 39 states.

“We focused in Iowa early on,” he said in a social media thread.

Binkley — the Create Church founder who gave his campaign more than $10 million in personal money only to have an impotent showing — told Politico after the New Hampshire primary election that in order to drop out, “God would just have to speak to me and tell me to end it.”

He added on his X profile that he looks forward to “considering other ways I can make an impact and promote my policy positions.”