Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie launched his campaign for the 2024 US presidential election with a scathing attack on Donald Trump and accused other contenders of avoiding a direct confrontation with him.

Christie presented himself as the only Republican contender willing to take on Trump. He is considered one of the former president’s most prominent critics due to his alleged rigging of the 2020 presidential election results.

“A self-interested pig serving his own interests is unfit to be a leader,” he said.

Christie followed Trump in mockery when he said he would build a border wall in the south of the country, saying Mexico would accept it, and the former president bears more responsibility for the failure than the current Democratic president, Joe Biden. Immigration policy.

Mutual criticism

Trump exchanged criticism with Christie, as he noted – in a post on the social networking site founded by “Truth Social” – for his opponent’s weight, and described him as a “failed governor”.

Christie hasn’t had much luck in the polls so far, getting support from 1% of likely voters in the Republican primary, compared to Trump, who received 49% support in a Reuters/Ipsos poll last May. And Florida Governor Ron DeSantis received 19% support.

Other Republicans seeking the Republican nomination to run against Biden include former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and Senator Tim Scott.

Former Trump Vice President Mike Pence is set to announce his candidacy on Wednesday.

Christie — a former federal prosecutor — ran in the 2016 election but ended his campaign after a disappointing finish in the New Hampshire primary, becoming the first high-ranking incumbent to endorse Trump and become an adviser on his campaign.

But he later disavowed Trump, a shift that appealed to Republicans who wanted to turn to the former president. But it remains unclear whether any Republican challenger can dominate this crowded arena without the support of a base loyal to Trump.