Marianne Williamson, the bestselling self-help author who ran a year-long unusual presidential campaign with new age themes, dropped out of the race Friday, saying she did not want to “get in the way of a progressive candidate winning” the Democratic nomination.

“I stayed in the race to take advantage of every possible opportunity to share our message,” Williamson said in a message posted on her website. “With caucuses and primaries now about to begin, however, we will not be able to garner enough votes in the election to elevate our conversation any more than it is now.”

Williamson, 67, arranged her electoral message around a hybrid of ’60s ideology passed through the filters of contemporary spiritualism and commercial pragmatism that resonated with some voters, through at 1% in the polls not nearly enough to qualify for any Democratic debate stages since July.

She told voters, some of whom she termed her “larger philosophical tribe”, that only love could defeat Donald Trump, who she argued was a symptom of a spiritual disease in society.

In June, she differentiated herself from ten other democrat candidates on a debate stage in Miami by speaking directly to Trump:

“Mr President, if you’re listening, I want you to hear me, please. You have harnessed fear for political purposes, and only love can cast that out. I’m going to harness love for political purposes. I will meet you on that field, and sir, love will win.”

At its peak, her campaign employed about 45 staffers in the four early voting states but on 2 January, WMUR television station in New Hampshire reported she had let go of campaign staff.

The reports were later confirmed by her former national campaign manager, Patricia Ewing.

﻿In many ways, Williamson’s campaign was a continuation of her career as a new age guru and bestselling author who counts Oprah Winfrey among her adherents. Her presidential campaign, which was announced on 28 January last year, was her second attempt to win electoral office; in 2014, she was unsuccessful in a bid to win a California congressional seat.

But as recently as last week, she had vowed to continue: “As long as I feel a connection with voters that gets to the heart of things, bringing forth the conversation that would win the 2020 election and help transform this country, I will remain in the race,” she had said.

But as the first voting approaches in next month’s Iowa caucuses Williamson could not sustain her effort.

In a message to supporters Friday, Williamson said that she would support whomever won the Democratic nomination “with all my energy and in full support”.

“Finally, these are not times to despair; they are simply times to rise up. Things are changing swiftly and dramatically in this country, and I have faith that something is awakening among us. A politics of conscience is still yet possible. And yes … love will prevail.”