Chris Sununu: Trump can’t win in 2024
Gov. Chris Sununu, R-Ohio, shares details about when he will formally endorse the 2024 GOP presidential nominee and reacts to the third Republican debate on “Your World.”
HOOKSET, N.H. — Republican Gov. Chris Sununu is the busiest politician on the presidential campaign trail in the crucial New Hampshire primary state this week, and he’s not even running for the White House.
Sununu teamed up Monday afternoon with former Ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley at a town hall in Hooksett.
On Monday evening, he will join former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who is making his second bid for the Republican presidential nomination, at a town hall in Nashua.
On Tuesday, he will team up with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to campaign in Manchester, New Hampshire’s largest city.
The matchup continues in Iowa, where DeSantis and Haley are competing for second place behind Trump
Governor Chris Sununu introduces former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley at a town hall in Hooksett, New Hampshire, on November 20, 2023. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Sununu said he will endorse one of those three candidates when he decides who to support in the 2024 Republican presidential race sometime after Thanksgiving.
“I’m not endorsing anyone yet,” the governor told reporters after the conclusion of the Haley event. “Nikki did an amazing job. She was really pounding the pavement… her message seemed to resonate.”
As the first vote approaches in the Republican presidential nomination race, this candidate remains in the driver’s seat
Sununu told Fox News Digital that his endorsement would be much more than just a one-day announcement.
“If I support a candidate, I will support a candidate,” he stressed.
He later added that he would back his endorsement 110%.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis campaign with GOP Governor Chris Sununu on August 19, 2023, in Londonderry, New Hampshire. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
“That’s the fun part. Are you kidding? I’m not going to do an endorsement and sit on my hands. When I do an endorsement, the pay period will be six, seven, eight, nine weeks, whatever it is, to really make sure people know where we stand,” he stressed. “I tend to not leave anything on the table.”
Sununu, who won the election and was re-elected to four two-year terms as New Hampshire’s governor, said he would help any candidate he supports “set up a field game. And I think we know how to do that well here.”
Haley, DeSantis, Ramaswamy, shared personal and emotional stories
But he also tempered expectations that his endorsement might move the needle in the Granite State, telling Fox News last month: “I’m not a big believer that endorsements matter as much as the press thinks they matter.”
Asked if he could see himself serving in a potential government of Haley, DeSantis or Christie, Sununu told Fox News on Monday, “I don’t need anything outside of Washington. I just want a great candidate and a great president and I think there are a great number of candidates.” . “A chance for that. No, nothing for me. I’m ready to go get a real job.”
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie joins hands with Governor Chris Sununu at a town hall in Merrimack, New Hampshire, on November 9, 2023. (Fox News – Deirdre Heavey)
The governor, who was eyeing a solo presidential run before announcing in early June that he would not launch a 2024 campaign, was an outspoken GOP critic of former President Donald Trump, who remains the front-runner for the GOP presidential nomination. He seeks to get his old job back.
“He has a floor, but he also has a ceiling,” Sununu said, referring to Trump’s significant lead in the latest polls in New Hampshire. “And when you look at the fact that over 50% of Republican voters in the base want someone else, and the fact that in New Hampshire you can have independents coming out — I believe in record numbers — and most of them won’t.” Vote for yesterday’s news regarding Donald Trump.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“These candidates have a lot of opportunities to make up a lot quickly,” the governor stressed.
New Hampshire’s Secretary of State announced last week that the primary will be Jan. 23, eight days after the Iowa caucuses, which precede the GOP presidential nominating calendar.
A sign outside the statehouse in Concord, New Hampshire, marks the state’s century-old presidential primary status, the first in the nation. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Granite State voters are known to typically be late deciders when it comes to their state’s first presidential primary.
As for when New Hampshire voters will decide who to support for president, the governor said, “They always do it after Thanksgiving, and I think this year even later than usual.”
“I think a lot of people will wait and see where this goes in late December, early January and make their decision,” Sununu added.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more in the Fox News Digital Election Center.