Mike Pence prepares to launch his presidential campaign next week | world

Former Vice President Mike Pence and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie plan to enter the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination next week.

A person familiar with the matter said Christie, who was an advisor to Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign before becoming a vocal critic of the former president, will formally announce his 2024 campaign on June 6.

Three sources familiar with the situation told Reuters that Pence, who has infuriated Donald Trump by refusing to support his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, is expected to enter the race against his former boss on June 7.

The growing number of candidates worries many of Trump’s opponents within the Republican Party. They fear that a large number of dissenters could fragment the anti-Trump vote and lead to the party nominating the former president, who can count on at least 30% of the Republican base to support him.

Trump has a large lead in the polls in a Republican field that now has nine declared or semi-announced candidates. His closest challenger is Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who entered the race last week.

As of June 1, Pence’s poll average in the Republican field is less than 4%, compared to Trump’s 53%, according to the RealClearPolitics poll average. Christie to this day barely scores in the polls.

Sources said Pence will launch his video and speech campaign in the Iowa primary.