Former Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff Nick Ayers endorsed former President Donald Trump this week.

Speaking to Axios, Ayers said that Trump’s victory in the Iowa caucuses on Monday shows the need to consolidate the Republican Party around one candidate.

“What happened in Iowa was an overwhelming mandate that every dollar should be spent on consolidating the GOP, not attacking Republicans,” he stated.

“How long are the candidates going to stay the race and continue to divert money to an intramural squabble? Let’s set aside the things we should be outraged over, and instead just evaluate the policy results,” he added.

Ayers, who served as Pence’s chief of staff for three years as part of the Trump administration, endorsed Trump over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Ron DeSantis, whom he considers friends. Defending his choice, he said that DeSantis and Haley had “two years to make their case to voters” but “fell 3x short.”

Ayers’ old boss, Mike Pence, was also seeking the party’s presidential nomination before dropping out late last year. Announcing his decision to quit his campaign on October 28, Pence, who criticized Trump several times during his campaign, admitted that it was not his time.

“It’s become clear to me: This is not my time. So after much prayer and deliberation, I have decided to suspend my campaign for president effective today,” he said at the time.

Ayers’ endorsement of Trump comes as the GOP frontrunner is having more previously-neutral Republicans choose to come to his side since his landslide win on Monday.

On Tuesday night, Sen Ted Cruz (R-TX), who has initially refrained from endorsing any of the GOP presidential candidates, announced his decision to back Trump’s bid.

Like Ayers, Cruz said while announcing his endorsement that Trump’s Iowa win the previous night reflects the people’s voice and shows that it is time for the GOP to unite under one candidate – Trump.

In his words, “Congratulations to President Trump on that dominating victory, and at this point, I believe this race is over. So I am proud to endorse Donald Trump for president of the United States. I look forward to supporting him enthusiastically because I think it’s time for the Republican Party to unite, for us to come together.”