Fong suspends campaign

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Republican candidate for governor Christian Fong announced today he has suspended his campaign for governor.

The 32-year-old Cedar Rapids businessman said he will no longer campaign for the 2010 GOP nomination for governor, but plans to stay “involved in the process, even if it’s not as a formal candidate for governor.”

Fong was among six Republicans who had been pursuing the nomination, and had done well early in his campaign, which began in June.

However, he, like others in the race, had been hurt by the entry of former Gov. Terry Branstad into the race. Branstad, a former four-term governor, announced in October he was retiring as president of Des Moines University to explore a run for governor

Since then, Branstad’s fundraising has allegedly cut into that of the other Republican prospects.

The Des Moines Register’s Iowa Poll last month showed Branstad preferred to Democratic Gov. Chet Culver, 57 percent to 34 percent. Sioux City Republican Bob Vander Plaats also led Culver in the hypothetical match-up with Culver.

http://blogs.desmoinesregister.com/dmr/index.php/2009/12/01/fong-suspends-campaign/