Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie said he is “definitely thinking about running” for president in 2024 and plans to make a decision in the next 60 days.
Christie is set to hold a town-hall style event at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics on Monday.
“Someone who is seriously considering running for president should go out there and talk to people and see what reaction you get,” he told Fox News‘s Brian Kilmeade.
Christie, who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2016 before dropping out and endorsing former president Trump, said whether he sees a pathway to victory over Trump and Florida governor Ron DeSantis will play a major role in his decision.
Christie served as an adviser in the Trump administration but has since become a vocal critic of the former president.
He recently told the Washington Examiner of Trump: “He told us during that campaign in ’16 that we were going to do so much winning that we would be sick of winning. Yet in 2018, we lost the House; in 2020, we lost the White House and we lost the Senate; and in 2022, we lost more governorships, another seat in the Senate, and historically underperformed in the House.”
“So, I’m tired of losing, and I’m tired of being disappointed. And I think most Republicans are, too. And that argument needs to be made and made directly to the people of our party. And then we’re going to see how they react,” he said.
Christie told Fox News three factors will help make his decision for him: whether he sees a pathway to winning and believes he has something to offer the country and whether he has the support of his family.
“If I answer yes to all three of those questions, then I’ll run,” Christie said. “If I answer no to one of them, then I won’t.”
Trump, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy are the only candidates to formally enter the race so far. Other likely contenders include DeSantis, former vice president Mike Pence, former secretary of state Mike Pompeo and Senator Tim Scott (R., S.C.)
