Former Rep. Beto O'Rourke abandoned his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination Friday afternoon, announcing that he was ending a campaign that began with momentum built from his underdog 2018 Senate bid but that ultimately struggled to gain traction.

"Though it is difficult to accept, it is clear to me now that this campaign does not have the means to move forward successfully. My service to the country will not be as a candidate or as the nominee," O'Rourke said in a statement . "Acknowledging this now is in the best interests of those in the campaign; it is in the best interests of this party as we seek to unify around a nominee; and it is in the best interests of the country."

O'Rourke launched his campaign with a cover story in Vanity Fair magazine in which he famously declared himself "born to be in it" but quickly found that the retail political campaign that brought him to the verge of defeating Republican Sen. Ted Cruz in Texas didn't translate to a national stage. He took criticism for energetically jumping on tables and countertops during public appearances, and a social media presence that once saw him post a video of a dental examination on Instagram rang hollow with a larger audience.

O'Rourke did momentarily break out of the pack in the wake of a mass shooting that left more than 20 people dead in his hometown of El Paso, Texas, drawing praise for advocating for his community. But a subsequent pledge to ban and buy back all military-style assault rifles in the wake of that shooting elicited consternation from Republicans and some Democrats.

O'Rourke, seen in 2018 as the Democratic's Party's next rising star, faced criticism for launching a presidential campaign when some felt he could better help the Democratic Party by running for Senate from Texas again in 2020, this time against longtime Sen. John Cornyn. He is not expected to run for Senate next year.

O'Rourke's presidential campaign struggled financially in recent months and he rarely climbed above 5% in national polls, typically polling lower than that. And while he secured the poll numbers and the financial backing to appear in Democratic debates, he seemed to struggle to articulate a coherent message.

President Donald Trump, who has made a habit of commenting when Democratic candidates drop out of the race, reacted to the news on Twitter.