Is former Vice President Mike Pence’s presidential campaign dead in the water?
The No. 2 man in the Trump administration ended September with a measly $1.18 million in his campaign account, according to campaign finance disclosures reviewed by The Associated Press.
Pence’s campaign also has $620,000 in outstanding debt.
For comparison, Trump has $37.5 million on hand, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has $12.3 million, according to the AP.
The financial struggles have forced Pence to cut loose staffers, an anonymous source told The Washington Post.
“It’s not clear whether Pence will reach the threshold of 70,000 unique donors to qualify for the third [Republican primary] debate, which will be in Miami on Nov. 8,” the Post reported.
But those struggles are only a sign of a deeper problem plaguing the campaign — Pence’s message is failing to excite voters.
Campaign events have drawn small crowds, with one speech in Iowa attended by just 13 people, according to Politico.
Pence’s efforts have resulted in minuscule polling numbers in early primary states such as Iowa and New Hampshire.
The former vice president checks in with 3.5 percent support in Iowa, according to the Real Clear Politics polling aggregate — well behind long shots such as South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and Vivek Ramaswamy.
In New Hampshire, Pence is currently polling at 1.4 percent, behind the even longer shot Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota.
Primary polling consistently shows Trump with a seemingly overwhelming lead over all other Republican contenders.
Pence has staked his campaign on a rejection of his former boss’ foreign policy, harking back to the conservatism of the George W. Bush era.
He’s been outshined by candidates such as DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.
Some Republicans are pointing to Pence’s bleak prospects as cause for dropping out of the race.
“For Pence and many of the others, you gotta start looking and saying, ‘I’m not going to go into substantial debt if I don’t see a pathway forward,’” former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker said, according to the AP.
Even Pence admitted his chances are slim while speaking with reporters in New Hampshire.
“I know it’s an uphill climb for a lot of reasons for us, some that I understand, some that I don’t,” he said.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
