Christie's run for president years in making
TRENTON, N.J. — When New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie enters the race for president Tuesday, he’ll do so as an underdog.
The launch of the Republican governor’s White House campaign is the culmination of years of groundwork that began even before his landslide re-election to a second term as governor in 2013, but one nearly felled by scandal and a descent from his standing as one of the nation’s most popular state leaders to a politician whose approval ratings have reached record lows at home.
It’s a reality Christie and his supporters are ready to embrace, not that they have a choice.
“Clearly, he’s got some uphill work to be done,” said Ken Langone, a co-founder of Home Depot and one of Christie’s most vocal cheerleaders. “But I think it can be done.”
In recent months, Christie’s team has tried to re-establish him as a credible candidate, chock-full of policy prescriptions. His aides and supporters talk about his charismatic personality, quick wit and plain-spoken manner, which they believe can win over voters.
With so many candidates in the field — Christie will be the 14th major Republican to enter the race, with two more likely before summer’s end — and no clear front-runner, they say they can forge a path to the GOP nomination.
“The worst position to be in is that of the media-anointed front-runner,” said Phil Cox, who founded the America Leads super PAC that will back Christie’s campaign. “The fact is, there is no front-runner, and anyone who tells you differently doesn’t know what they’re talking about.”
Christie will kick off his campaign at the gymnasium of his old high school in Livingston, N.J., where he served in student government and played for the celebrated baseball team. His remarks will reintroduce him to a national audience and draw heavily on his biography.
Christie often emphasizes his working-class roots, telling the story of his father, who paid his way through college while working at a Breyers ice cream plant. It’s an implicit contrast with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, whose family name and flush campaign accounts will be factors Christie will have to contend with.
