Bernie Sanders won Minnesota's 2016 Democratic primary. He might win again with Amy Klobuchar's exit from the race

Sarah Kocher | St. Cloud Times

Show Caption Hide Caption Amy Klobuchar ends presidential campaign ahead of Super Tuesday Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar has suspended her campaign for president a day before Super Tuesday primaries.

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar ended her campaign for president Monday, less than 24 hours before 14 states — including her own Minnesota — hold their primaries on Super Tuesday.

On Monday night in Dallas, Klobuchar endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden, urging fellow Democrats to vote for "decency" and "dignity."

"I think Sen. Klobuchar had a great run," said Larry Jacobs, political science professor and department head at the University of Minnesota.

He said Klobuchar had a small staff compared to "monster"-sized campaigns like that of Mike Bloomberg, and she didn't have much money behind her. Going forward, Jacobs said he expects her to play more of a leadership role in the U.S. Senate.

After she finished sixth in Saturday's South Carolina primary, Jacobs said he thinks "it began to dawn on her that she had no chance."

Steven Schier, a professor of political science at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, said that was likely a factor, and dropping out ahead of Super Tuesday puts her in the good graces of Biden and other established Democrats.

"She's generated a lot of goodwill across the Democratic Party by doing this at a critical moment, when a lot of established Democrats are unifying around Biden," Schier said.

Schier said Klobuchar is young compared to the field of remaining candidates and is leaving the race with friends on her side.

"I think that Amy Klobuchar is tactically very shrewd and very ambitious, and by acting today, she produced a lot of opportunities for the future that she may not have had by waiting a day or two, and I think she knows that," Schier said.

But Jacobs said the door is now open for another candidate — already expected to show well in Minnesota after his performance in 2016 — to get the lion's share of delegates. Four years ago, Sanders won 61.6% of the vote against Hillary Clinton the state's caucuses.

"Bernie Sanders is now going to do pretty well in Minnesota," Jacobs said, a sentiment echoed by Schier.

Proud of my friend @amyklobuchar and the strong campaign she ran. She built a coalition that brought people together and stood up for decency in our politics.



Amy — you made Minnesota proud. pic.twitter.com/qj9q0P5hLu — Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) March 2, 2020

Voters who already turned in absentee ballots are stuck with their vote. The deadline to pull them back was a week ago, long before Klobuchar announced the end of her presidential campaign. Though he did not specifically mention Klobuchar, Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon confirmed this in a tweet posted shortly after the announcement.

"The votes are wasted, and I feel bad for those people," Jacobs said.

You could see her breath when Klobuchar announced her run for president amid falling snow in Minneapolis on Feb. 10, 2019.

Since then, her campaign hit some highs, including a split endorsement from the New York Times with Elizabeth Warren. Klobuchar also finished third in the New Hampshire primary.

But she finished fifth in the Iowa caucuses and sixth in South Carolina, and Klobuchar's campaign canceled a rally Sunday night after Black Lives Matter protesters took over the stage in St. Louis Park.

Klobuchar is Minnesota's first female senator and has served in the U.S. Senate since 2007.

"She built a coalition that brought people together and stood up for decency in our politics," Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz tweeted Monday. "Amy — you made Minnesota proud."

Follow Sarah Kocher on Twitter: @SarahAKocher.