Chris Christie turns down No Labels candidacy
By Ali Main and Dana Bash, CNN
(CNN) — Former Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie said Wednesday he will not run as a third-party candidate.
“I appreciate the encouragement I’ve gotten to pursue a third-party candidacy. 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,” the former New Jersey governor said in a statement on Wednesday.
“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 continued.
A spokesperson for Christie confirmed that he has decided against running as a candidate with No Labels, as the group continues to pursue launching a third party moderate ticket.
CNN reported earlier this month that No Labels officials had talked with advisers to Christie.
Several prospective candidates and members who had heard No Labels’ pitch previously told CNN they had been left skeptical of the group’s plans. No Labels officials have repeatedly said they don’t want to become a spoiler that would help Donald Trump win a second term. Meanwhile, they have urged prospective candidates and others to prioritize accusing President Joe Biden of having politically toxic positions he does not actually hold.
The group has also reached out to other possible candidates, even as top prospects like West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin and former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan have distanced themselves from the effort.
Later Wednesday, Christie remembered the late Joe Lieberman, who helped found No Labels, remarking in a social media post that the former Democratic senator’s “whole life was dedicated to putting country before party in all he did.”
Christie said he last spoke to Lieberman on Monday, and “he was fully engaged in a conversation of how to overcome the toxic political environment in our country.”
Christie ended his long-shot presidential run in January, just weeks before the first-in-the-nation primary in New Hampshire. The former New Jersey governor launched his campaign in June, pitching himself to voters as a foil to the front-runner, former President Donald Trump. Christie, who also ran for president in 2016, sought to appeal to more traditionally conservative, establishment-friendly Republicans.
In his first post-candidacy interview in February, Christie told ABC, “I don’t know what I’m going to do in November. But I’m not voting for Donald Trump, under any circumstances.”
This story has been updated with additional developments.
CNN’s Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, Gregory Krieg, Shania Shelton and Edward-Isaac Dovere contributed to this report.
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