Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) will announce this morning that he is dropping out of the 2008 presidential contest.

Vilsack, who left office at the beginning of this year, is set to hold a news conference outside his Des Moines headquarters at 11 a.m. Central Standard Time.

Vilsack was one of the first Democrats to officially toss his hat into the presidential ring, but his campaign has lagged in the shadow of the superstar candidacies of Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) and Barack Obama (Ill.).

Vilsack’s immediate plans are unclear.

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) is up for re-election in 2008 and has indicated that he will run again, although he has not officially declared his candidacy.

— Lauren W. Whittington