Staff Reports
Former Governor Chris Christie is poised to secure the number two position behind former President Donald Trump in the Republican Party’s presidential nomination race, coming in close to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. A recent poll of New Hampshire’s Republican primary voters found Christie gaining significant ground compared to other candidates, now garnering seven percent of the vote after only joining the race weeks ago. DeSantis, however, has lost a third of his support over the past month, putting him in a vulnerable position.
?NEW POLL: Chris Christie Closes In On DeSantis In New Hampshire; Trump Grows Lead?https://t.co/2bpr5nQVYu
— ????Josh Dunlap???? ULTRA-MAGA (@JDunlap1974) June 16, 2023
As per the latest poll of 500 likely Republican primary voters conducted by National Research Inc., President Trump has strengthened his grip among Republicans, capturing 44 percent support in June compared to 39 percent in May. In addition, Trump’s lead over Governor DeSantis has widened, with the former President now enjoying a 32-point spread over his closest rival, up from 21 points in May.
Governor DeSantis, who positioned himself as a leading contender after receiving the endorsement from former President Trump, faces a difficult challenge after finding out that he will not benefit from New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu’s decision not to run for the presidency. This requires the Florida governor to focus on peeling away virtually all the support garnered by other candidates in the race.
The New Hampshire poll results are noteworthy as the former New Jersey Governor, Christie, had palpable distaste among Republican voters. Christie left office tarnished by the infamous Bridgegate scandal and challenged Trump in 2016 for the presidential nomination, with less than 10 percent of the vote in New Hampshire. Christie subsequently offered a full-throated endorsement of the 45th President after beating the anti-Trump drum for months, which was widely criticized as being nakedly opportunistic.
Despite his opportunism, Christie never took much of a prominent role in the former president’s administration, and it was rumored that Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, put a stop to Christie’s ambition to become U.S. Attorney General as revenge for prosecuting his father in the past. Regardless, Christie’s recent rise in popularity shows that he may come ushering as the top contender to DeSantis and stands a good chance against Trump, who is inching closer to securing a significant victory in the New Hampshire primary.
