Former Virginia Gov. Gilmore ends bid for the White House

In this photo taken Jan. 23, 2016, Republican presidential candidate, former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore speaks at the New Hampshire Republican Party summit in Nashua, N.H. AP

WASHINGTON — Former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore says he is dropping out of the race for the White House.

The Republican says in a statement he plans to support his party’s nominee and will continue to speak out about what he called the dangers of electing Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders, the two candidates for the Democratic nomination.

Gilmore announced his candidacy in July, saying his record as a national security expert and a fiscal conservative would set him apart in a crowded Republican field.

But his campaign failed to win any support, and Gilmore qualified for only two so-called undercard debates.

The former Army intelligence officer briefly ran for the GOP presidential nomination in 2007 and lost a US Senate bid in 2008 to another former Virginia governor, Mark Warner.

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