Just before the Iowa caucuses, the former New Jersey Governor, Chris Christie, announced the suspension of his bid for president on Wednesday. Citing that he can say clearly that there “isn’t a path for [him] to win the nomination,” Chris Christie closed his bid as he addressed supporters in New Hampshire. However, his closing remarks were not subtle as he also announced his opposition to Donald Trump saying, “I am going to make sure that in no way do I enable Donald Trump to ever be president of the United States again.”
Christie did not endorse any of the Republican rivals but instead called out both former United States Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for failing to directly target Trump. He remarked that the reason for his rival’s failure to actively speak out against Trump is in direct correlation to their fear of alienating Trump’s loyal supporters.
Chris Christie continued to blast Donald Trump by saying that stopping Trump from becoming president again, “…[is] more important than my own personal ambition,” a sentiment he feels his fellow rivals do not share. He continued to comment that he believes Haley will get “smoked” and that she is “not up to this.” Haley only responded in a statement as she called Christie “a friend for many years” and praised him “on a hard-fought campaign.”
Although allies of Haley, such as New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu, had been urging Christie to exit, Christie’s decision to exit the race still came as a surprise. He had commented just Tuesday night that he was going to continue his campaign. However, Christie had to face the reality as polls revealed that Haley showed more signs of momentum with 4 in 10 likely Republican primary voters choosing Trump and about one-third now choosing Haley as their choice of candidate.
Now, with Christie’s exit, allies of Haley are hoping that his supporters will shift their support to the former United States Ambassador. She is seen as the most moderate candidate remaining in the race. The New Hampshire poll found that about two-thirds of Christie’s supporters would favor Haley as their next choice.
Chris Christie did manage to outlast better-funded and better-known candidates such as former Vice President Mike Pence and Senator Tim Scott. However, his run is now over as he hopes his absence will leave room for another candidate who will oppose Donald Trump for the candidacy of President of the United States.
