This past Saturday, former Vice President Mike Pence dropped out of the race for the Republican party’s nomination for next year’s presidential election. With approval ratings and funding which trailed those of his competitors, particularly his former boss, Pence announced that he would no longer pursue the presidency. With this dull end to his bid, it is difficult to avoid the glaring fact that Pence has seemingly faded into political oblivion.

Pence, a devout evangelical Christian from rural Indiana, was first elected to Congress in 2001, where he served until 2013 before moving on to the governorship of Indiana. It was in this position, which he held between 2013 and 2017, that he signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (Indiana), a bill which, in essence, gave businesses the right to discriminate against gay couples on the grounds of religion. 

Within days of the bill’s March 2015 signing, it was met with heavy criticism from the public and other politicians, both within and outside of the Republican party. Most notably, several cities, states, and corporations scolded the new bill and cut off relations and business with the state of Indiana.

Over the next year, Pence would attempt to put this unfavorable stint behind him, but to little avail. His projected rerun in 2016 was set to be less smooth than expected, and his approval ratings were over 20 percent lower than they had once been.

So to Pence, former President Trump’s offer to be his running mate was a seemingly easy decision, a sort of escape from the turmoil Pence had brought upon himself in his home state. Despite his private criticisms of Trump and his unconventional mannerisms, Pence leeched on to the opportunity, never looking back.

Fast forward seven years, and Pence has been out of office for nearly three years, struggling to draw traction amongst Trump supporters and opposers alike. With his accepted defeat this past weekend, Pence has effectively signed his political death sentence, surrendering himself to the person he once believed to have rescued him.