Coble drops out of Ansleigha governor's race

HAWKINSON, Asl. -- Another aspirant for Ansleigha's governorship has dropped out of the race.

Oil executive Pete Coble (N) announced he was suspending his campaign for governor, after new polling numbers showed Coble badly trailing his fellow NAT candidates, Agatha Houndsler and Paul Biddington.

"The new poll numbers just are not in our favor. It's clear from the latest polling data that there is not a viable path to winning for our campaign," Coble said at a hastily-called press conference Friday afternoon.

Coble said fundraising had been challenging, especially since he was competing with two better-known and more popular opponents. Coble told reporters his campaign staff were optimistic that the moderate Nationalist could chart a narrow path to victory as a centrist amid two more left-wing opponents. But the polling numbers, and a lack of fundraising, indicated the road the governorship was over for him.

"I want to thank the thousands of Ansleighans who have come out to fairs and forums and meetings to hear me speak. Or who opened their doors to me when I knocked on their front doors. Thank you for listening, thank you for sharing your concerns and needs, and thank you for your faith in my candidacy," he said.

Coble did not say if he will endorse one of his rivals. Though sources close to Coble say he has been courted by both the Houndsler and Biddington campaigns in recent weeks, with both campaigns hoping he will endorse their respective candidates.

A noted moderate, Coble struggled from the beginning to win over Ansleigha's NAT faithful. As an oil executive, he's been slow to embrace electric vehicles, he's called for less taxes while Ansleigha's NAT leaders have demanded more, and he has opposed raising Ansleigha's minimum wage.

Though he's personally pro-choice, Coble largely avoided contentious social issues on the campaign trail. His reluctance to discuss women's and transgender rights angered NAT activists who view those two issues as cornerstones of the party's platform.

At least one source close to Coble, who asked to remain anonymous because they were not permitted to speak to the media, told the The Ansleighan newspaper that Coble has also been contacted by the campaign of Gov. Sam Baskingwood (C).

Baskingwood's campaign staff are hoping to land an endorsement from Coble as well, The Ansleighan reports.

But spokespeople for both Coble and Baskingwood declined to comment.

Coble's exit from the race leaves just state Sen. Paul Biddington (N-Churchtown) and art teacher and psychologist Agatha Houndsler (N-Danaecke) in the race.

The winner of the May 28 primary election will go on to face Sam Baskingwood (C-Boykin) and businesswoman Rosamond Burkes (I-Carlinegan) in the fall election.