Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has put to bed the idea of a third-party run for president after months of speculation.
“I appreciate the encouragement I’ve gotten to pursue a third party candidacy,” Mr. Christie posted Wednesday on X. “I believe we need a country that once again feels like everyone has a stake in what we’re doing and leadership that strives to bring people together, instead of using anger to divide us.”
“While I believe this is a conversation that needs to be had with the American people, I also believe that if there is not a pathway to win and if my candidacy in any way, shape or form would help Donald Trump become president again, then it is not the way forward,” he said.
Mr. Christie, who dropped out of the race for the Republican presidential nomination in January, has continuously been one of former President Donald Trump’s most vocal critics.
He has vacillated on a third-party candidacy. The Republican governor has called the effort of No Labels, a bipartisan group that wants to get a third-party candidate on the ballot, “a fool’s errand.”
He started to change his mind about the group once he dropped out of the race. Last week, he said he would continue to do “whatever” it takes to stop Mr. Trump from serving another term in the White House, even if that means running on a third-party ticket.
Speaking to former Obama adviser David Axelrod on an episode of his podcast “The Axe Files,” Mr. Christie said he would be open to running on a No Labels ticket.
“I think the way I would look at it is, I will do whatever I can to try to make sure that the country doesn’t go through what I think will be the misery of a second Trump term,” he said.
Despite No Labels urging people to get involved and pushing to get on more and more states’ ballots, the group keeps getting turned down. Some worry about a third-party candidate taking votes from President Biden, which could help Mr. Trump win, while others apparently don’t want to get involved.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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