Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) filed paperwork Tuesday to run for president as he looks to take on former President Trump for a second time in 2024.
Christie is the latest Republican to enter the burgeoning 2024 Republican primary field. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Sen. Tim Scott (S.C.) announced bids to knock Trump off his perch for the GOP presidential nomination last month, and former U.N. Ambassador to the U.S. Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy launched their campaigns earlier this year.
Former Vice President Mike Pence is expected to formally announce a bid Wednesday, in addition to North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu announced this week that he’s declining a run at the White House.
Christie ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, ending his campaign following a disappointing showing in the New Hampshire primary in February. He placed sixth in the early primary state.
During an interview with Fox News’s Brian Kilmeade in March, he said that he’d make a decision on a potential White House bid within 60 days.
Christie will have one key advantage that the other contenders will not: He has run against Trump before. He has also worked with the former president 2020 to aide with debate prep, meaning he’ll have more insight into Trump’s weaknesses and strengths on the debate stage.
The former New Jersey governor has been comfortable taking aim at Trump directly and frequently. The presumptive GOP White House field has largely avoided going after the former president, though the upcoming debates could likely change that dynamic.
The first GOP presidential debate will take place in August in Milwaukee.
Meanwhile, President Biden has officially announced that he’s running for reelection, and two Democrats have launched long-shot bids to unseat Biden — progressive Marianne Williamson and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., anti-vaccine activist and nephew to former President John F. Kennedy.