Heading back to New Jersey for a rest....

Chris Christie expected to suspend presidential campaign

The New Jersey governor had made a big push in New Hampshire, but only mustered a sixth-place finish.

By Alex Isenstadt and Daniel Strauss

Chris Christie is expected to formally suspend his campaign later on Wednesday, according to a source close to the campaign, after finishing a disappointing sixth in the New Hampshire primary.

The New Jersey governor was expected to spend part of the day reaching out to donors and top supporters to discuss his decision, the source said.

Christie had laid the groundwork for a hard push in New Hampshire long before the race kicked into high gear, but his candidacy was eclipsed by a large Republican primary field that sucked away voters from all angles. It was difficult for Christie to appeal to voters craving a blunt Republican with Donald Trump in the field. And for the voters looking to back an establishment-aligned candidate with political experience, Christie was crowded out by Sen. Marco Rubio, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, and Ohio Gov. John Kasich.

Christie's campaign hasn’t gone without some successful moments. A video clip of him talking about addiction went viral, shifting the national spotlight briefly to his campaign. In the second half of 2015, he started to pick up steam in New Hampshire and briefly looked destined to place the highest of any establishment candidate in that primary.

Ultimately he finished third of the three governors in the race, and looked like he might not make the cut for Saturday’s GOP debate. He caused a flurry of confusion on Tuesday night when he gave a concession speech that at first indicated he was dropping out. But clarified that he was going back to New Jersey to discuss the situation with his wife.

"Mary Pat and I spoke tonight and we've decided to go home to New Jersey tomorrow and we're going to take a deep breath and see what the results are tonight," Christie said. "By tomorrow morning or tomorrow afternoon we should know."

Christie added that after they know the results, "that should allow us to make a decision."

What little time Christie spent outside of New Hampshire was devoted to Iowa, where he filled his campaign team with veterans associated with Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad. While Branstad never endorsed before the Iowa caucuses, he appeared at campaign events alongside Christie. Still, it wasn’t enough; Christie finished the caucus near the bottom of the field, placing ahead of only former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, who dropped out soon afterward, and former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore.

Christie brushed off Iowa, saying New Hampshire had always been his true focus. But in the final few weeks of the New Hampshire primary, Christie's poll numbers dipped as the rest of the field began campaigning in the state.

Fundraising was never a strong point for Christie either. In the fourth quarter of 2015, Christie raised only $4.2 million and ended up with roughly $1 million cash on hand.

Ahead of the Christie campaign's impending end, at least one rival candidate praised the governor.

“I think that Chris did an amazing job in terms of the debate, as a prosecutor, and he’s a friend of mine,” Donald Trump said Wednesday on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. “And he actually called me last night, and we had a long talk, and he’s a little disappointed because he really did do a great job, he did an amazing job during that debate,” he added.