Jim Webb Exits the 2016 Democratic Primary

Just days after the first Democratic debate, during which Jim Webb received little time, and after which received little attention, the former Virginia Senator is now exiting the race and ending his campaign. Worth noting is that Webb left the door open to an independent run, something he’ll be considering in the coming weeks.

Here is video of Webb’s statement from the press conference held minutes ago:

Report from Fox News:

Former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb will announce Tuesday that he is dropping out of the Democratic presidential race, Fox News has learned.

Webb is said to be disillusioned with the Democratic Party — as well as the Republican Party — and how the political parties are being pulled to allegedly extreme positions by the huge amounts of loosely regulated money fueling the campaigns.

Webb has a press conference scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.

While Webb is thought to be weighing a possible independent bid, he is not expected to launch an independent campaign for president Tuesday. Rather, he’s expected to take some time after his announcement to talk with people from across the political spectrum before making a decision.

Webb, like most of the other candidates in the Democratic race, has struggled to get out from under the shadow of front-runner Hillary Clinton. During the first Democratic debate last week Webb complained repeatedly about how little time he had to answer questions.

He said Thursday he felt the debate had been “rigged in terms of who was going to get the time on the floor.”

Webb didn’t exactly fit the mold of the modern Democratic Party, and he along with everyone else on the debate stage knew it. In that regard, he may be ideal for an independent run if he really wants to hit back at what he’s calling a “rigged system” in the Democratic primary.

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Nate Ashworth

The Founder and Editor-In-Chief of Election Central. He's been blogging elections and politics for over a decade. He started covering the 2008 Presidential Election which turned into a full-time political blog in 2012 and 2016 that continues today.

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