Tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang suspended his campaign for president on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020 (United States timing).

This was after he failed to make an impact in the New Hampshire primary, despite emerging as the improbable candidate in the Democratic primary.

He had campaigned on giving every adult American US$1,000 a month.

Half a day after bowing out, he gave a shout-out to his Yang Gang -- the people who are supporting his bid for president:

Why he quit

Yang and his advisers began discussing about ending his bid when a second distant loss in the first two voting states looked likely.

Yang did not want to drag it out, his campaign manager said.

"You know I am the math guy and it is clear tonight from the numbers that we are not going to win this race," Yang told cheering supporters as he bowed out.

But he has floated potentially running again in four years.

Long-shot bid for presidency

Yang launched his long-shot campaign as an unknown in politics.

But he started early enough to become the second Democrat to enter what became the most diverse field in history with a long list of candidates.

The Ivy League-educated son of Taiwanese immigrants, who was bidding to be the country's first Asian-American president, launched his long-shot candidacy in 2017 as a virtual unknown.

He qualified for debates but was relegated to the far side of the stage where lower-polling candidates were placed.

His signature proposal was about giving US$1,000 to every adult to help them adapt to the effects of computer automation.

Seen as a gimmick at first, he was subsequently treated seriously by his rivals and some of the media.

Yang attracted an ardent group of followers, especially among Asian Americans, with his non-politician speaking style and quirky sense of humour.

As an Asian candidate, Yang stood out.

But he also made memorable campaign messages, such as when he argued that Donald Trump became president because automation decimated the manufacturing industry and devastated communities.

Those who were angry and confused turned to Trump as a break from the politics they viewed as responsible for their plight.

Yang said at a Democratic debate on Friday: "Donald Trump is not the cause of all our problems, and we're making a mistake when we act like he is."

"He is a symptom of a disease that has been building up in our communities for years and decades."

Donors backed him

Yang ran for months with almost no media coverage.

Traditional media gave him short shrift, but he capitalised on the non-traditional media platforms, such as social media and narrowcasting.

His breakout came when he went on Joe Rogan’s popular podcast.

When Yang's campaign announced US$9.9 million was raised in the third quarter of the year, people started to take him more seriously.

He followed that up with a US$16.5 million haul the following quarter.

In all, Yang’s fundraising chops, his devoted fan base and his rise from nowhere to outlasting sitting senators and governors to sixth in the polls was one of the biggest surprises of the Democratic primary.

But the story took a sharp turn once voters weighed in.

In Iowa, Yang garnered just 1 percent of the raw vote, and no delegates.

Back in March 2018: