ST PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Democrats 2024 candidate for vice president, is ending his bid for a third term as governor less than four months after launching a reelection campaign.

Walz said in a statement Monday that he believes he would have won another term but decided “that I can’t give a political campaign my all” after what he described as an “extraordinarily difficult year for our state.”

The 61-year-old cited ongoing investigations into fraud in the state’s child care programs and the fact that President Donald Trump has used the issue as a political cudgel.

“Donald Trump and his allies – in Washington, in St. Paul, and online – want to make our state a colder, meaner place,” Walz said, referring to the Trump administration withholding funds for the programs. “They want to poison our people against each other by attacking our neighbors. And, ultimately, they want to take away much of what makes Minnesota the best place in America to raise a family.”

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Barrow reported from Atlanta.

Steve Karnowski And Bill Barrow, The Associated Press