Former Obama cabinet member Julian Castro will dismiss campaign staff in New Hampshire and South Carolina effective next week, Politico reported Tuesday.
The campaign is aiming to focus its resources on Iowa and Nevada, with $50,000 in television ads to go on air in Iowa Tuesday morning. When asked for comment, the campaign referred to a Saturday statement from Castro’s press secretary Sawyer Hackett.
“In pushing to keep Secretary Castro’s critical voice in this race. Our campaign, like many others, will make adjustments in staffing and resources,” Hackett said at the time. “This race is shifting as we speak, and Julián will continue to be fearless and defy expectations by making the most of our resources.”
The next Democratic primary debate will be held on November 20, but Castro is struggling to qualify for a place on the stage. To do so, he would need to pass three percent in five polls approved by the Democratic National Committee (DNC), or five percent in early-state polls similarly approved by the DNC.
So far, Castro has not met any of these marks.
In the final ten days of October, the campaign released a statement saying if it didn’t raise $800,000 by the end of the month, Castro’s candidacy would be finished. On November 1 the campaign announced it had met that goal.
Democratic strategist Colin Strother, who has advised the Castro campaign, said the campaign was spending too much money.
“This concept of running a national campaign is great in concept, but it’s bleeding them dry,” he said.