GOP's Tom Tancredo Drops Out of Colorado Governor's Race

DENVER, CO -- It wasn't "covfefe" but with a typo-filled tweet, GOP gubernatorial frontrunner Tom Tancredo ended his bid for the Republican nomination Tuesday.

"Hey Sniwflakes. You can come out if your safe spaces!" Tancredo tweeted after telling the Colorado Politics website that he didn't think he could beat Democrat U.S. Congressman (and millionaire) Jared Polis in the general election.

“Even though I’m the front-runner — you make it through a primary, and then all hell breaks loose, you have millions upon millions of dollars spent attacking you, and you can’t respond, you don’t have the resources to respond," Tancredo said in an interview with the website. "It appeared to me the goal — winning the general, that was the main goal — and it does not appear to me to be feasible.”

Tancredo's campaign manager, Mike McAlpine, confirmed the news with the Denver Post, and also said finances in the general contest would be a problem.

Tancredo was the GOP frontrunner in a crowded field, pulling in more than 20 percent of the projected primary votes in several recent polls. Tancredo, an unapologetic Donald Trump supporter and Colorado conservative ran for Governor twice before, in 2010 as a third-party candidate and then in 2014 as a Republican. He has been known for his opposition to Denver's "sanctuary city" status and his conservative views on immigration in general.

Tancredo said in his Colorado Politics interview that the campaign needed to raise $150,000 by Jan. 15 to see a path to winning. The campaign reported $74,480 raised through the end of the year and had $62,996 in the bank in the most recent reports.

Tancredo said he would endorse the primary winner and didn't favor any specific GOP candidate.

Tancredo's throwing in the towel now gives the hoard of other Republicans a chance to gain traction in the crowded race. Democrat John Hickenlooper must step down due to term limits.

Other GOP candidates running are: Pres. Donald Trump's Denver Co-Chair Steve Barlock, Colorado Atty. General Cynthia Coffman, Larimer Co. Commissioner Lew Gaiter, former Parker Mayor Greg Lopez, former lawmaker Victor Mitchell, retired investment banker Doug Robinson and Colorado Treasurer Walker Stapleton.

In the Democrat primary, Polis is being challenged by Lt. Gov. Donna Lynne, former State Treasurer Cary Kennedy, former lawmaker Mike Johnston and businessman Noel Ginsburg.

Read Colorado Politics coverage here.

Image via @TancForGovernor