( CNN ) -- Mitt Romney suspended his bid for the Republican presidential nomination Thursday , saying if he continued it would `` forestall the launch of a national campaign and be making it easier for Senator Clinton or Obama to win . '' `` In this time of war , I simply can not let my campaign be a part of aiding a surrender to terror . This is not an easy decision . I hate to lose , '' the former Massachusetts governor said . `` If this were only about me , I 'd go on . But it 's never been only about me . I entered this race because I love America , and because I love America , in this time of war I feel I have to now stand aside for our party and for our country . '' Romney made the announcement Thursday afternoon at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington . With Romney out , Sen. John McCain is locked in as the front-runner in the GOP race . Romney had won 286 delegates through the Super Tuesday contests , compared with McCain 's 697 . The crowd booed when Romney mentioned McCain , saying , `` I disagree with Sen. McCain on a number of issues . '' Watch as Romney bows out » . `` But I agree with him on doing whatever it takes to be successful in Iraq , on finding and executing Osama bin Laden , and I agree with him on eliminating al Qaeda and terror worldwide , '' he said . According to a senior McCain adviser , McCain called Romney and told him he `` admired his speech today and that he was a tough competitor . '' McCain also told Romney he looks forward to sitting down with him at the earliest opportunity . McCain did not ask Romney for his endorsement . Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama viewed Romney as a more vulnerable candidate , preferring to run against him rather than McCain , CNN senior political correspondent Candy Crowley said . `` They were looking at Mitt Romney as pretty doable in the political sense saying , 'This is a guy that has a record that we can really run with ' and they ran with it in the Republican Party as you know , saying that he used to be pro-choice , now he 's anti-abortion . He has changed his position on stem cells , he has changed his position on gay unions , that sort of thing , '' she said . As recently as Wednesday , Romney met with aides to discuss strategy to stay in the race through March 4 . Although he outspent his rivals , Romney received just 175 delegates on Super Tuesday , compared with at least 504 for McCain and 141 for former Arkansas Gov . Mike Huckabee , according to CNN estimates . Romney came in first in Massachusetts , Alaska , Minnesota , Colorado and Utah on Super Tuesday . In the early voting contests , he won Nevada , Maine , Michigan and Wyoming . After his win in the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses , Huckabee became Romney 's chief rival for the party 's conservative vote . Huckabee on Tuesday won Arkansas , Tennessee , Georgia , Alabama and West Virginia . Romney entered the race in early 2007 after finishing his single term as governor with the support of much of the GOP 's conservative establishment . He had campaigned as the viable conservative alternative to McCain , who has infuriated much of the party 's activist base over the years . But voters `` just did n't get a sense of him that gave enough of them enough confidence , '' said former education secretary and radio talk-show host Bill Bennett . `` A lot of people could n't get comfortable with Romney for one reason or another -- changes in position ; 'Why is he going this way ? He 's a businessman , why does he sound like he is a born-again Christian ? ' People were just not sure of what the message was , '' Bennett said . The 60-year-old former investment banker touted his management credentials throughout the campaign , citing his experience in Massachusetts and his turnaround of the scandal-plagued 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City , Utah . Despite pouring millions of his own fortune into the campaign , Romney struggled after Huckabee upset him in the Iowa caucuses and McCain came from behind to beat him in New Hampshire . `` Primaries are a killing field , '' said CNN senior political analyst Bill Schneider . `` They take losing candidates and get their bodies off the field . '' Suspending a campaign has a different meaning depending on the party . On the Republican side , decisions on how to allocate delegates are left to the state parties . On the Democratic side , a candidate who `` suspends '' is technically still a candidate , so he or she keeps both district and statewide delegates won through primaries and caucuses . Superdelegates are always free to support any candidate at any time , whether the candidate drops out , suspends or stays in . National party rules say a candidate who `` drops out '' keeps any district-level delegates he or she has won so far but loses any statewide delegates he or she has won . E-mail to a friend . CNN 's Robert Yoon , Dana Bash and chief national correspondent John King contributed to this report .
Romney : `` I can not let my campaign be a part of aiding a surrender to terror '' This is the same guy who said he would have invaded Iraq if it were up to him. Primaries are a killing field , says CNN senior political analyst Bill Schneider . John McCain locks in front-runner position .