Thompson drops out

Former Sen. Fred Thompson (Tenn.), who fared poorly in each of the early-voting contests, withdrew from the GOP nomination race Tuesday afternoon.

{mosads}Thompson had been expected to drop out of the race shortly after his third-place finish in last Saturday's South Carolina Republican primary.

"Today I have withdrawn my candidacy for president of the United States," Thompson said in a statement. “I hope that my country and my party have benefited from our having made this effort.  Jeri and I will always be grateful for the encouragement and friendship of so many wonderful people."

Thompson was late getting into the race compared to his rivals, and he suffered from several high-profile staff shake-ups and lackluster campaigning.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) said Monday that Thompson only stayed in the race through South Carolina to divide the conservative vote and guarantee victory there for Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).