VietJoy

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SAN FRANCISCO - Former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg has dropped out of the race to become the Democratic Party's presidential nominee, after a weak showing in the 14 states that held primaries Tuesday.

Former Vice President Joe Biden won nine states, including the delegate-rich state of Texas.  Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders took the state with the most delegates, California, as well as Colorado, Utah and his home state of Vermont. Bloomberg won American Samoa, the U.S. territory, gaining five of its six delegates, while picking up three more delegates in Colorado and one in Arkansas.

"Three months ago, I entered the race for President to defeat Donald Trump. Today, I am leaving the race for the same reason: to defeat Donald Trump – because it is clear to me that staying in would make achieving that goal more difficult," Bloomberg said in a statment Wednesday. "I've always believed that defeating Donald Trump starts with uniting behind the candidate with the best shot to do it. After yesterday's vote, it is clear that candidate is my friend and a great American, Joe Biden."

Democratic U.S. presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden takes a picture among supporters at his Super Tuesday night rally in Los Angeles, California, March 3, 2020.

In the past two months, Bloomberg's path to the Democratic nomination had been the one to watch. A former Republican and independent, Bloomberg's message had been that he was the one who could beat Trump in the general election, appealing to moderate and conservative Democrats.

Entering the race late, Bloomberg skipped the first four states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina and went straight to Super Tuesday, with 1,357 delegates at stake. He reportedly spent $600 million of his vast fortune on TV and social media campaign ads and built a staff seemingly overnight on the ground in each state. He tapped into local mayors and community groups for support.

Like a lot of people, Soham Bhatia, who works at an educational nonprofit organization in Oakland, had divided loyalties. Wearing a "CA for Mike" shirt in support of Bloomberg and a "Team Joe" sticker for Biden, Bhatia went to a cafe in Oakland on Tuesday to see Biden, who was making a campaign appearance.

"I voted for Mike Bloomberg," he said. "I got all my friends to vote for Mike Bloomberg. We voted early. It looked like Biden would not get his stuff together. And then he did. Now it's time to unite behind Joe Biden."

Bhatia still supports Bloomberg, though, hoping the former New York mayor plays a role in the Democratic convention in Milwaukee this summer.

"He gambled, he did something very interesting, and he should be commended for that," he said.