12. "Huntsman departs race"

"Days before the South Carolina primary, Jon Huntsman dropped out of the presidential race Monday and endorsed Mitt Romney for the party's nomination, becoming the latest Republican to call the GOP front-runner the strongest candidate to beat the Democratic incumbent."

Huntsman did decently in the New Hampshire primary, placing third.

The results don't indicate a obvious reason for Huntsman to drop out of the race. However, it is suggested that the fact that he stayed out of the Iowa caucus could have hurt his running.

"Huntsman made the strategic decision to skip campaigning in Iowa. Today, Iowans are wondering if the move contributed to his demise.

While every other presidential candidate was stumping in dozens of Iowa counties, Jon Huntsman stayed away.

"Iowa picks corn, not presidents," said Huntsman, prior to the Iowa Caucus."

Huntsman did terribly in the Iowa caucus. He did not manage to receive even a single percent. He finished with 745 votes, which is 0.6% of the total votes. His comment couldn't have helped, people tend not to like it when you say things like that about their state.

Sources:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46010872
http://www.kcci.com/r/30224931/detail.html