Trump May Have New Challenger for 2024 Race

New Hampshire’s moderate Republican Governor Chris Sununu is definitely not running for president right now, he told CNN’s Dana Bash in a nationally televised special earlier this month.

“I’m not thinking about it right now,” the longtime governor, fresh off reelection to his fourth two-year term, told Bash last week. “I’m really not….My focus right now is New Hampshire. It really is. Because it has to be. And I want it to be.”

His political action committee, however, says otherwise.

Overnight Tuesday, some observers noted a Sununu-aligned PAC had begun running social media ads in the early-voting states of Iowa and South Carolina, sparking speculation that Sununu—a moderate Republican—was, in fact, contemplating a run for the Oval Office in 2024.

“He said on national TV literally yesterday that he ‘is only focused on New Hampshire right now,'” Monica Venzke, communications director for New Hampshire’s Democratic Party, wrote in a tweet highlighting the ad buys. “WEIRD way of showing it, Gov!”

Newsweek has contacted Sununu’s office for comment.

The advertisement, which has so far been seen by fewer than 1 million people in the two states, depicts Sununu sharing with Bash his vision for a contemporary Republican Party divorced from the divisive and combative style of figures like Donald Trump, whose brand of politics largely suffered in an electoral environment this cycle where more moderate Republicans succeeded.

Sununu, who has sought to paint a softer picture of contemporary conservatism, won his race in the state by 16 points while his state’s far-right Senate candidate, Don Bolduc, lost by nearly 9 points—a template Sununu says more candidates in his party need to follow.

New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu speaks at the Republican Jewish Coalition annual leadership meeting on November 19 in Las Vegas. On Tuesday, a Sununu-aligned PAC began running social media ads in the early-voting states of Iowa and South Carolina. Scott Olson/Getty Images

“Nobody gets inspired to get more involved in public service by being yelled at or blasted out from a podium or shaking their hands. Nobody gets inspired by that,” Sununu says in the clip. “They might get amped up, but not inspired.”

The ad doesn’t necessarily mean he’s running for president. However, he hasn’t exactly ruled it out: In the same interview with Bash, Sununu told her he was “open to everything” regarding his future.

“Look, I’m open to what comes in that door next,” he said. “I’m open to any opportunity that might come down the road. Not for me personally but for the state or the community.”

That position, however, has put him in vaunted company. In recent months, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Trump’s onetime vice president, Mike Pence, have maintained a regular presence in both states ahead of anticipated 2024 campaigns.

Others, like former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, have been constants in speculative talks over Trump alternatives in 2024, while figures like Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis—the most likely frontrunner outside the former president—have each worked overtime in efforts to maintain their national profiles.

Ultimately, Sununu’s aspirations for his party might be lofty ones: While middle-of-the-road candidates may be more electable in competitive races post-Trump, they are certainly not the favorites of the GOP base.

In most polls, Trump and DeSantis continue to dominate, while other numbers demonstrate little appetite for their alternatives.