Candidate Karger Officially Ends His Presidential Campaign

Laguna Beach's Fred Karger, who announced his longshot-at-best plan to seek the Republican nomination for President of the United States two years ago, formally ended his campaign today, Wednesday, via Twitter and Facebook posts.

"We are folding up our big tent & ending our historic campaign for President," wrote Karger. "Thx to all who supported this undertaking, I am forever grateful."

Unlike other better-known and better-funded candidates, Karger remained in the race until the end, which came Tuesday in Utah, site of the final primary race. Karger's performance in Utah mirrored his results in all other states. He finished in fifth place with 545 votes, far behind Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum—both of whom withdrew earlier this year—Ron Paul, and nominee-to-be Mitt Romney.

Karger's finish was predictable, given that his was a largely unknown name who didn't have any scruples about being gay within a party that remains extremely hostile about gay issues. But as he said frequently, his mostly self-financed bid wasn't necessarily about winning, but about inspiring a coming generation of gay youth that anything is possible, even taking a stab at the highest office in the country.

There were memorable moments along the way, from despite meeting the network's qualifying criteria, to shooting , to filming .

But despite winning lots of new friends (as well as some new enemies) around the country, not everyone became a Karger fan. Some Laguna Beach citizens

So now that Karger has a lot of free time on his hands, what should he do now? Take our poll below, and check out Laguna Beach Patch's Fred Karger archive.