'Count me out': Paul Ryan rejects rumours of presidential bid

The House Speaker is expected to make an afternoon announcement

Paul Ryan delivering a speech on the state of US politics Win McNamee/Getty

US Speaker of the House Paul Ryan ruled himself out as a presidential contender should Republicans contest the nomination of Donald Trump.

In remarks delivered to the press Tuesday afternoon, Mr Ryan said definitively that he will not accept the presidential nomination from the party in the event of a contested convention.

“I do not want, nor will I accept the nomination for our party,” he said referring to delegates. “If no candidate has a majority in the first ballot [at the Republican National Convention], I believe you should only choose from a person who has actually participated in the primary.”

Mr Ryan urged delegates to make a rule that made sure they only choose a nominee who “actually ran for the job.”

Commenting on the tumultuous GOP primary season, he added that these races tend to be “personality contests” not “policy contests” where “insults get more ink than ideas.” Mr Ryan insisted that it was his job as Speaker of the House to advance the debate in Congress about the direction of the country.

Speculation about the Wisconsin congressman’s candidacy emerged amid the calamitous campaign of the New York business mogul that has establishment Republicans worrying about the state of affairs for the party.

Despite his insistence that he is not running for president, Mr Ryan released a campaign-style video entitled “Politics These Days,” which outlined his platform for his “Confident America” initiative.

The New York Times speculated that Mr Ryan was running alongside the leading Republican candidates in hopes to jump into the race. But after Mr Ryan's Tuesday statement suggested otherwise.

“This job provides a platform to communicate the conservative vision for our country,” he said. “I believe that we can once again be an optimistic party.”