Chris Christie says Donald Trump 'can't win a general election' and GOP is finally recognizing harm of 'loser' candidates after 2022

• As Donald Trump embarks on his 2024 campaign, Chris Christie said he "can't win a general election."
• Former New Jersey Gov. Christie said on "This Week" he believes Trump's electability has declined since 2020.

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Donald Trump "can't win a general election" and predicted the former president will not be successful in his 2024 presidential run.

Christie, a Republican, said on "This Week" on ABC News that Trump's electability has "gotten worse" since the 2020 election.

"I've said, over and over again, that he can't win a general election," Christie said Sunday. "That's not speculation. That's based upon the polling that I was privy to pre-the 2020 election, and what we saw actually happen in the 2020 election. And it's only gotten worse since then."

Christie said Trump's situation has worsened following the disappointing results of the 2022 midterms for Republicans, in which several of Trump's hand-picked candidates lost their races.

"Then add to it what you saw happen in 2022, the election deniers losing across the country, bad candidates like (Doug) Mastriano in Pennsylvania dragging the entire Pennsylvania ticket down in a historic way; Kari Lake, Blake Masters, Tim Michels," Christie said. "We could go through the entire list, loser, loser, loser, loser, and I think Republicans are recognizing that."

—This Week (@ThisWeekABC) January 29, 2023

Trump announced his run for re-election in November and has since conducted political visits to New Hampshire and South Carolina, saying he is "more angry" and "more committed now than I ever was."

It's too dangerous to take the option of a Trump nomination off the table entirely, Christie and other commentators on "This Week" noted, referencing his unexpected success in 2016.

"You have him on the table every minute," Christie said.

Recent polls have shown Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis leading Trump in presidential polls, though Trump has dismissed those, Insider previously reported.

"He won't be leading, I got him elected," Trump said of DeSantis, referencing his key 2018 endorsement that helped DeSantis rise to political stardom. "I'm the one that chose him."