Christie Attributes GOP Loss in New Jersey to Trump’s Unpopularity
In a recent interview, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie suggested that the Republican Party’s lackluster performance in last year’s Garden State election was largely due to President Trump’s unpopularity in the region.
Christie pointed out that Democrat Mikie Sherrill won against Republican Jack Ciattarelli by a notable 14 percentage points. He attributed part of this defeat to Ciattarelli’s association with Trump, which he believes turned off many voters, particularly independents.
“It was an absolute disaster,” Christie said during an appearance on WABC Radio’s “Cats Roundtable.” He noted that the Republicans lost the governorship by 14 points and five seats in the New Jersey State Assembly, marking the party’s lowest seat count since the Watergate era.
A former ally of Trump remarked, “New Jersey is in desperate times. We have forgotten how to win.”
Christie clarified that Trump acted as a burden for Ciattarelli and other Republican candidates in New Jersey. He explained, “The problem for Jack Ciattarelli was his closeness to the president, which disgusted a lot of independents here.” He added that when a Republican gubernatorial candidate fails to win independent voters, the odds of winning are slim, especially given that there are about 850,000 more Democrats in the state.
“The reality is that the president isn’t as favored in New Jersey as he is elsewhere,” Christie stated. “Jack aligned himself completely with the MAGA movement, and that really hurt him. This wasn’t just a small loss; it was significant.”
He noted that New Jersey has some of the highest corporate, property, and income taxes in the country, which adds to the challenges for Republicans.
Interestingly, Christie mentioned that he views New Jersey as a slightly better option compared to New York. He noted that Sherrill isn’t a far-left candidate like New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani.
Christie, who served as governor from 2010 to 2017 and is the only Republican to have held that position in New Jersey during the 21st century, has made two presidential runs, in 2016 and 2024, both of which were won by Trump.
His political career has been marred by the “Bridgegate” scandal, which involved significant delays for residents trying to access the George Washington Bridge. This scandal resulted in the conviction of two of Christie’s colleagues, who plotted to create traffic jams as a form of political retribution. However, in 2020, the Supreme Court ruled that no federal laws were broken, leading to the dismissal of the aides’ convictions.
Although Christie has always denied direct involvement in the scandal, he had a falling out with Trump last year after being criticized for his approach to criminal investigations and after being mocked over the Bridgegate issue.
