Democratic presidential candidate, mayor of Miramar, Florida Wayne Messam speaks to the crowd during the 2019 South Carolina Democratic Party State Convention on June 22, 2019 in Columbia, South Carolina.
Sean Rayford | Getty Images
Wayne Messam, the mayor of Miramar, Florida, dropped out of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary after failing to break through in a crowded field.
The little-known candidate tweeted his decision to suspend his campaign on Wednesday.
Messam did not qualify for any of the Democratic debates and was not counted in many major polls.
His campaign raised just over $50,000 in the second quarter of 2019, according to FEC filings, a mere fraction of even the lowest-earning candidates in the race. And he raised a paltry $5 in the third quarter.
By contrast, another small-town mayor and presidential candidate, Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., raised nearly $25 million, topping the list. He raised $19 million in the third quarter.
Messam joined the race touting his family’s ‘American Dream’ story and his record as Miramar’s first black mayor. He focused on issues including health care, climate change, student debt and dysfunction in Washington.
Messam owns a successful construction business with his wife and is a former Florida State University football star.
