New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie danced around the question of whether he'll run for president in 2016 Tuesday, saying "I won't make those decisions until I have to."
Christie faced off against Democratic challenger state Sen. Barbara Buono in the first debate of the 2013 gubernatorial election at William Paterson University in Wayne, N.J. Tuesday, and though the two were there to discuss state matters, the presidential question kept creeping up.
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When asked directly if he was planning to run for president, Christie shied away.
"Listen, my mother told me a long time ago … do the job you have at the moment the best you possibly can and
the future will take care of itself," he said, according to ABC News. "The fact is there have been people talking about me running for president since 2010 and they all said I would do it in 2012 and I said I wouldn’t and I didn’t. And the fact is after 2017 I'm going to be looking for another job anyway."
Later on, a moderator from WCBS-TV in New York City pressed the issue further when he asked why people should vote for Christie if he can't commit to four years as governor.
"I don't think anybody in America or in the state of New Jersey expects anybody three years away to tell them what they are going to do. Life's too long," Christie responded. "I'm going to continue to do my job the best way I possibly can and I am not going to declare tonight … that I am or I am not running for president and you know what? People don’t expect me to, they expect me to do my job."
According to the latest Fairleigh Dickinson University poll from earlier this month, Christie is ahead 58 percent to Buono's 25 percent.
The general election is scheduled for Nov. 5.
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