Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is mulling a third bid for the White House.
He gave a nod toward another run for the Republican presidential nomination at the Granite State Summit on Responsible Gaming, according to footage shared by WMUR Political Director Adam Sexton.
Mr. Christie tied his decision to the GOP’s performance in the midterm elections, which he viewed as a referendum on President Trump and the Make America Great Again movement.
“For our party’s sake, if we do a lot of losing, six weeks from today, I wonder whether we’re going to say, ’OK, we need to change this approach and change this [MAGA] wing of the party from being the dominant wing,” Mr. Christie said.
He said big losses would signal that it’s time for a “different discussion within our party, which could lead to a different conversation with the country.”
Mr. Christie ran for the Republican nomination in 2016 and 2024, both times losing to Mr. Trump. He was a staunch ally of Mr. Trump until the 2020 election, when he broke with the president over his stolen election claims.
In the Granite State speech, Mr. Christie stood by his criticism of the president, reiterating warnings he made in the 2024 race: “Donald Trump is not good for our party and not good for our country, and it’s going to hurt our country both here and around the world if we sent him back to the White House.”
The former two-term governor said that anyone who has run for president and lost but says they are not thinking about another run is being less than honest.
“Let me just promise you, they are lying,” Mr. Christie said. “Because once you go through the thought process of convincing yourself that you can be president, and then the next step, that you should be president, that doesn’t leave your brain, you go all of a sudden, ’Oh, no, that was a mistake. I was wrong. Not ready to be president. Shouldn’t be president.’”
Vice President J.D. Vance is the early front-runner for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination, though there is a wide field of potential challengers, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Other possible contenders include Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas.
Figures such as Donald Trump Jr. and political commentator Tucker Carlson could also be in the mix.
If Mr. Christie decides to run, he said he will tell his wife, ’I know you may not believe this, but the third time is the charm.’”
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