Former Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) has withdrawn from the race for the Republican presidential nomination amid low polling just days before the Iowa caucuses.
Journalist Mark Halperin first reported on Substack that Christie was scheduled to leave the trail on Wednesday.bloomberg news Confirmed Mr. Christie announced shortly thereafter that he would resign, citing “people familiar with his plans.” His announcement will be made at an event in New Hampshire on Wednesday, the outlet said.
At the national level, Chrisie's polling average on RealClearPolling (RCP) register She received 3.5% of the vote, good enough for fifth place behind former President Donald Trump, former Gov. Nikki Haley (R-Fla.), Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.), and Vivek Ramaswamy.
He is endured Polling in Iowa was similarly poor, averaging 3.4% in RCP, but he appeared poised to build on his strong victory momentum in New Hampshire. teeth Other than Trump and Haley, they are the only candidates with double-digit RCP averages of 12%.
But while New Hampshire marked the end for the unpopular former New Jersey governor in 2016, he won't even make his first campaign in the Hawkeye State this time around.
Mr. Christie ran as the chief Trump critic in this area, attacking Mr. Trump as a “dictator” during a NewsNation debate in December, and saying that Mr. Trump would seek “full-scale retribution when he returns to the Oval Office.” He claimed he wanted it.
Christie's Trump-bashing angered the 45th president, who called him a “sloppy RINO dog” in a Truth Social post in December, just a week after the debate. Trump also teased him about his performance in the Granite State in 2016, when he finished sixth.
“Sloppy Chris Christie did so badly in New Hampshire in 2016 that he dropped out and endorsed me right after the votes were counted,” the 45th president wrote in the post.
“New Hampshire doesn't like that sloppy RINO dog, and we don't like Ron in fifth place either. MAGA!” Trump added.
