Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie to launch presidential campaign next week

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, one of former President Donald Trump‘s most vocal Republican critics, is poised to announce his 2024 presidential campaign next week, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC on Wednesday.

Christie, 60, is expected to launch his long-shot bid during a town hall event in Manchester, New Hampshire, on Tuesday, said the person, who declined to be named ahead of the announcement.

The former governor’s announcement is set to come less than two weeks after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis officially joined the Republican primary race, becoming a top rival to Trump, who currently boasts a commanding lead in the polls.

Of the polls of the prospective primary field that include Christie, most show him in the low single digits.

The latest presidential bid marks Christie’s second shot at the White House. He ran for the Republican nomination in 2016, dropping out after placing sixth in the New Hampshire primary. He endorsed Trump soon thereafter.

But Christie in recent months has railed against Trump repeatedly and criticized other GOP presidential hopefuls, many of whom seem to be taking pains to avoid direct conflict with their biggest competition.

“Donald Trump is a TV star, nothing more, nothing less,” Christie said last month. “Let me suggest to you that in putting him back in the White House, the reruns will be worse than the original show.”

Christie was elected governor of the historically blue state in 2009 and served for two terms, the maximum allowed under term-limit rules. He gained national attention as governor for his connection to the 2013 “Bridgegate” scandal, in which commuter lanes were shut down on the George Washington Bridge connecting New Jersey and New York in retaliation against a mayor who refused to back Christie’s reelection bid.

The Supreme Court in 2020 reversed fraud convictions against two of Christie’s aides who had played key roles in the scandal.

Allies of the former governor earlier this week launched a super PAC, Tell It Like It Is, encouraging him to run for president. The PAC and members of its leadership team did not immediately respond to CNBC’s requests for comment on Christie’s plans.

Christie is set to deliver remarks and take questions from an audience at a town hall at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College at 6:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, according to NBC News. Trump hosted a controversial town hall event at the same college weeks earlier.

The Republican field could continue to grow after Christie jumps in. Former Vice President Mike Pence said he will announce his presidential plans in June, and New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu said he will decide on a 2024 bid in the coming weeks.