Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has withdrawn his name from consideration to run on the “No Labels” presidential election ticket.
The No Labels group has struggled to put forward a ticket challenging both President Donald Trump and Joe Biden in the 2024 election.
The group contacted Christie about a potential run last week.
No Labels reached out to the former GOP candidate after he appeared to leave the door open to a third-party run in a public interview.
In a statement, Christie said:
“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.”
Christie revealed that he believes his run as a third-party candidate could help Trump.
He suggested this was part of his decision to reject the offer, saying:
“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 added.
Christie ended his 2024 GOP nomination campaign in mid-January.
The one-time Trump supporter, ally, and adviser broke with him over the then-president’s attempts to challenge the 2020 election results.
Christie became an extremely vocal GOP critic of the 45th president.
He made his opposition to Trump a centerpiece of his doomed 2024 White House run.
Christie had previously shut down the idea of a No Labels run as a “fool’s errand” in an interview last year.
Earlier this month, No Labels took further steps toward forming a bipartisan presidential ticket in November’s general election.
The group announced the formation of a committee to vet candidates for a potential ticket.
The announcement of the committee came a week after roughly 800 No Labels delegates who took part in a virtual meeting voted to give a thumbs up to fielding a presidential ticket.
No Labels has since approached several potential candidates in recent months.
Nevertheless, none of them have moved forward with a campaign.
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