'I believe things are starting to happen here': Ben Carson vows to fight on despite another sizable defeat

AP Photo/John Bazemore

Despite another apparent staggering loss, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson said Tuesday he is staying in the race for the Republican presidential nomination.

Shortly after Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump was declared the victor of Tuesday's Nevada caucuses, Carson took the stage at his caucus party.

He told his supporters that he would continue to share his ideas despite an alleged media "blackout" of his campaign.

"I believe things are starting to happen here. I know the pundits and the political class — they want to call anything. They say it's all done, it's all over, we may as well go home and do the coronation now. But you know what? I believe they're wrong," Carson said.

"I believe people are starting to wake up," he added. "We are going to put the fire in our bellies."

Though Carson surged in some surveys of Republican primary voters last year, his campaign staggered toward the end of the year. And he has failed to mobilize support in the early states. As results trickled in Tuesday night, Carson appeared headed for fourth place, the same position he placed in the Iowa caucuses. 

Carson has repeatedly criticized media outlets for dismissing his shot at the nomination, saying his supporters have encouraged him to stay in the race despite skepticism from the "pundit class."

"I'm getting a lot of pressure to make sure I stay in the race," Carson told CNN last week, referring to his supporters. "They're reminding me that I'm here because I responded to their imploring me to get involved. And I respect that and I'm not just going to walk away from the millions of people who are supporting me."

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