Bobby Jindal drops out of the race for US president
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal
Although he showed some strength in the early voting state of Iowa, the 44-year-old governor consistently performed poorly in national polls.
He was shut out of the main Republican debates, relegated to secondary stages.
“This is not my time,” Governor Jindal said on Tuesday.
The Oxford-educated son of Indian immigrants added diversity to the Republican field, which includes African-American neurosurgeon Ben Carson and businesswoman Carly Fiorina.
However, Governor Jindal sought to distance himself from his Indian heritage during the campaign.
“We are not Indian-Americans, African-Americans, Irish-Americans, rich Americans, or poor Americans. We are all Americans,” he told supporters when he launched his campaign in June.
Unpopular in his home state after a budget shortfall, Governor Jindal had been considered a long-shot for the nomination.
During his campaign, Governor Jindal sought to appeal to evangelical Christian voters, taking hard lines on gay rights and Islamic extremism.
However, he was courting the same slice of the electorate as rival candidates such as Mr Carson, Texas Senator Ted Cruz and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee.
Governor Jindal joins former Texas Governor Rick Perry and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker who have also suspended their campaigns for president.
Fourteen Republicans remain in the race.
BBC
