Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang has joined CNN as a political commentator.
Yang “rose from obscurity to become a highly-visible candidate during the campaign, rallying a coalition of liberal Democrats, libertarians and some disaffected Republicans to form a devoted group of followers known as the Yang Gang,” the network said in an announcement on Wednesday.
“Yang’s campaign was defined by the candidate’s happy go-lucky style. Videos of him singing in a church choir, dancing to the ‘Cupid Shuffle’ and crowdsurfing at events regularly went viral, helping burnish his image as a candidate just happy to be with his fans,” it added.
The 45-year-old entrepreneur suspended his presidential campaign following the New Hampshire primary last week after a surprising run that saw him outlast many higher-profile Democratic candidates, including Sens. Kamala Harris (Calif.) and Cory Booker (N.J.) and former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (Texas).
“While there is great work yet to be done, you know I am the math guy,” Yang told supporters in New Hampshire. “It is clear tonight from the numbers that we are not going to win this race.”
“I am not someone who wants to accept donations and support in a race we will not win,” he continued.
Yang qualified for most of the Democratic debates and used the stage to outline his universal basic income platform, which he referred to as the Freedom Dividend. It called for giving American adults $1,000 a month, or $12,000 a year.