Colorado Springs City Councilman Tom Strand is ending his bid to unseat incumbent Republican Congressman Doug Lamborn before it began.

“The pieces for ’18 just didn’t roll together. … It seemed like I was trying to put a square peg in a round hole to make this happen,” Strand said Friday of his decision not to enter the GOP’s crowded 5th Congressional District primary. “And I’ve never really filled out the paperwork to be in the race.”

Strand, 69, announced his intention to run for Lamborn’s seat in August. A longtime registered Democrat, he had planned to run as a Republican, joining challengers state Sen. Owen Hill of Colorado Springs and El Paso County Commissioner Darryl Glenn, who lost to Democrat Michael Bennet in the race for U.S. Senate last year. Republican Bill Rhea is also running in the primary.

With a relatively late start, Strand said hiring campaign staff was a challenge and his fundraising prospects were slim.

“I’ve collected not one dollar,” he said.

And on the advice of one political consultant who told him a loss in the race might end his chances at a congressional seat, Strand said he’d rather shoot for 2020.

Strand said his wavering political affiliations might have presented a challenge in the GOP primary, which, in the heavily Republican district that includes Colorado Springs, is tantamount to winning election.

Opponents would “have a circus” with the fact that he’s been registered as a Democrat and a Republican, Strand said. In reality, he sees himself as an independent.

“As the clock turns to ’18, I’m going to register as an independent,” he said. “I’ve always been sort of moderate in my views.”

As a councilman and president of the Colorado Springs Utilities Board of Directors, Strand said he already has a host of responsibilities that require his attention.

“If Owen Hill can be a state senator and still run a campaign then God bless him,” he said. “The same goes for Darryl Glenn.”