US Senator Bernie Sanders dropped out of the presidential race, giving former Vice President Joe Biden a clean path to the 2020 Democratic nomination.

78-year-old senator from Vermont made the announcement in a call with his campaign staff, his campaign said.

In a live stream on his campaign website Wednesday afternoon, Sanders thanked his passionate army of grassroots supporters, and argued the need for Medicare-for-all was more apparent now than ever during the coronavirus outbreak.

“I want to express to each of you my deep gratitude for helping to create an unprecedented grassroots political campaign that has had a profound impact in changing our nation,” Sanders said.