Ex-Whitewater prosecutor Ray quits Senate race

TRENTON, New Jersey (CNN) -- Former Whitewater prosecutor Robert Ray has dropped out of the race for a U.S. Senate seat from New Jersey.

"He made a decision that it was going to be too difficult to mount a successful campaign getting into the race so late," campaign spokesman Tim Ireland said.

Lack of money and time were key factors in Ray's decision, Ireland said.

"In order for him to win, he would have to go directly to the voters via television, which is exorbitantly expensive," he said.

"We started to estimate that he would need to raise $60,000 to 100,000 a day to get the money he needed to run the kinds of ads he wanted for the early primary in June to prevail."

Ray was one of six Republican candidates fighting to take on Democratic incumbent Robert Torricelli. The filing deadline was Monday; Ray announced his candidacy March 21. State Assemblyman Guy Gregg also withdrew Monday from the Senate race.

"This race, though it lasted only 18 days, was an uphill climb from a standing start," Ray said. "Still, I believe it was worth trying, and I was honored to have done so."

Ray succeeded Kenneth Starr as independent counsel in October 1999 and oversaw the agreement with President Clinton that avoided a possible criminal trial.

In a deal struck the day before he left office, Clinton admitted that he had made false statements under oath about his relationship with Lewinsky, a former White House intern. He surrendered his law license for five years and paid a $25,000 fine to Arkansas state bar officials.

In his final report, issued in early March, Ray said there was sufficient evidence to have brought charges against the former president.

Ray stepped down as independent counsel March 12.