Republican presidential candidate Ryan Binkley has announced that he's suspending his campaign. 

In a statement on X, he says he now will endorse and support Donald Trump for president. 

"I would like to thank my family, friends, campaign team, 80,000 plus financial supporters, and the hundreds of volunteers who helped share my vision. Without your efforts, prayers, love, and generosity, none of this would have been possible."

Binkley made the announcement on the same day as Michigan's primary - and after losing in Nevada's caucus earlier this month.

FEBRUARY 1, 2024:

Both the February 6 Nevada Presidential Preference Primary (PPP) and the February 8 Nevada GOP Caucus are taking place next week.

The Nevada GOP's First in the West Caucus has seen a significant decline in the number of candidates running for the presidential nomination. Initially, six Republican candidates had registered and paid a total of 55 thousand dollars each to participate in the contest. However, now, Ryan Binkley, a Texas businessman and pastor, is the only challenger in a race that is heavily dominated by former President Trump.

"If we can get 5 or 10 percent, get a delegate or two, come out here and get some national attention, that's really our goal," said Republican U.S. Presidential Candidate Ryan Binkley.

Ryan Binkley is the CEO and Co-Founder of Generational Group, a mergers and acquisition (M&A) firm. He and his wife, Ellie, founded Create Church 10 years ago, where they serve as lead pastors.

He has more than 82,000 individual donors, but he's self-funding a lot of his campaign with millions of dollars.

Though Binkley has received little media attention, he's on the ballot in more than 30 states. And, he's only one of two candidates the Nevada Republican voters will see on their February 8 caucus ballot.

"It's time for us to transcend partisan politics, the division we have today. I'm a candidate who can help us focus on the next generation and on the economy. Let's solve the border crisis," said Binkley.

Binkley's platform includes plans to strengthen the dollar, reign in inflation, and reduce the national debt. He says that the U.S. healthcare system is the most inefficient system out of the top 20 industrialized nations in the world.

"Healthcare is largely unaffordable for the average American. We spend 31 thousand a year for a family of four to have health insurance. It's the only thing we purchase as Americans today that we don't know the cost before we go in," said Binkley.

Binkley acknowledges that Trump's fight against the Federal government is relatable to many Americans but says the former president's campaign is divisive

"President Trump wants to leave the border open right now; he doesn't want (U.S. Speaker of the House) Mike Johnson to solve the border crisis, really for one reason: it is his main pitch as he comes to November."

Nevada political columnist Michael Schaus has strong words for the Nevada GOP's decision to run the caucus just two days after the state primary.

"This should have been a year where Nevada was the epicenter of the Republican operation. You would have expected millions of millions of dollars and plenty of campaign stops, and we really haven't seen that. There have been a couple (campaign stops), but because of what's going on with the caucus and the primary, everybody is kind of looking past us," said political columnist and public relations expert Michael Schaus.

Schaus contends that the party is making their image in Trump's name, and it's not a winning strategy.

"They are saying they're going to blacklist Nikki Haley donors; that's not a party that's welcoming in new voters. It's actively trying to expel people who they don't see as pro-Trump enough. And that's not going to be a winning strategy when looking at where we are in the polls and what is happening in November. It will be a tough election; you need every vote you can get," said Michael Schaus.

It's worth noting that Nikki Haley is participating in the state-mandated primary. The Nevada GOP has stated that their reasons for holding the caucus include enforcing voter identification, which they believe will make it more secure, and they anticipate that results will be available on the night of the caucus.