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 Huckabee, who vied for the Republican presidential nomination in
2008, announced his decision to leave the show on Facebook, then bid
his viewers farewell on his final show Saturday night.
"I'm not going to make a decision about running until late in the
spring of 2015, but the continued (political) chatter has put Fox
News in a position that just isn’t fair to them," Huckabee said on
his show.
Fox News has previously ended contracts with national figures
considering presidential campaigns, including former U.S. Senator
Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania and former Speaker of the House Newt
Gingrich in 2011.
"The honorable thing to do at this point is to end my tenure here at
Fox, so I can openly talk with potential donors and supporters and
gauge support," Huckabee said on Facebook.
"So as we say in television, stay tuned!" he added.
Huckabee's show, "Huckabee," had been on air for over six years.
The former pastor, who remains popular among conservative
evangelical Christian voters, has been in the middle of the
Republican pack in preliminary national opinion polls.
During the 2008 Republican nominating contest, he briefly enjoyed
frontrunner status. He chose not to run for the White House in 2012.
Huckabee, governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007, is set to release
a book titled, “God, Guns, Grits, and Gravy” later in January. He
spent part of late 2014 shoring up his foreign policy credentials
with a European trip.
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Should he pursue a White House bid, Huckabee would join former
Florida Governor Jeb Bush as a major Republican name considering a
run. No other likely contender has announced his or her plans, but
the party’s field is expected to be wide and varied as Republicans
look to replace Democrat Barack Obama.
Huckabee's popularity with evangelical Christians and conservatives
could complicate the plans of likely rivals like Santorum and U.S.
Senator Ted Cruz of Texas. Huckabee's announcement could push up the
campaign timelines of other possible contenders.
The likely Republican field also features a handful of current
governors, including New Jersey's Chris Christie, Texas' Rick Perry,
and Wisconsin's Scott Walker, and sitting senators like Cruz,
Florida's Marco Rubio, and Kentucky's Rand Paul.
The Democratic frontrunner, former Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton, has yet to announce her plans.
(Additional reporting by Elvina Nawaguna; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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