Ex-Arkansas Gov: We need ‘multiple candidates’ in 2024 to give voters ‘alternative vision’

Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson said that he thinks there needs to be multiple ‘alternative’ voices from Donald Trump in the 2024 GOP primary election.

He was responding to former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan announcing that he will not run for the Republican nomination because he feels that the race will get crowded with too many candidates who won’t be able to gain momentum from current frontrunners.

Hutchinson, who joins Hogan in being an anti-Trump Republican, has not ruled out his own run for president.

‘In the early stages, multiple candidates that have an alternative vision to what the former president has is good for our party, good for the debate, good for the upcoming debate that will be in August,’ Hutchinson said in a Sunday morning interview with CNN’s State of the Union program.

‘And so, sure, that will narrow, and it will probably narrow fairly quickly,’ he continued. ‘We need to have a lot of self-evaluation as you go along, but I think more voices now that provide alternative messages and problem-solving and ideas is good for our party.’

Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said there needs to be multiple candidates in 2024 to give ‘alternative’ voices to Donald Trump. He said he will make an announcement on if he’s running in April 

In an interview released earlier on Sunday with CBS News’ Face the Nation, Hogan said after announcing he would not run in 2024: ‘I didn’t want to have a pile up of a bunch of people fighting.’

‘Right now, you have – you know, Trump and DeSantis at the top of the field, they’re soaking up all the oxygen, getting all the attention,’ he explained. ‘And then a whole lot of the rest of us in single digits and the more of them you have, the less chance you have for somebody rising up.’

Hutchinson, however, told CNN: ‘This is not 2016. Donald Trump is a known quantity. He makes his message of revenge clear.’

‘[Hogan] did say he wanted to avoid a multi-car pileup – I got a kick out of that reference,’ Hutchinson continued. ‘And I actually think that more voices right now in opposition or providing an alternative to Donald Trump is the best thing and the right direction.’

The former Arkansas governor said the GOP needs ‘a different type of leadership in the future.’

‘It should not be someone that’s going to appeal to the worst instincts of our country,’ he added, clearly referencing Trump.

Hutchinson signaled that he could make an announcement next month on whether he will make a bid for president, but said March should be spent on improving the messaging of the Republican Party.

‘March is a message month,’ he said. ‘I want to continue to talk about having a consistent conservative message out there.’

‘We need to have all alternatives, again, to Donald Trump. We don’t need to be led by arrogance and revenge in the future. We need to be led by those that are problem-solving, that want to stick with the principles of our party and unite us together. And so that’s the message in March.’

‘April is a decision time. So, we will stick with that plan.’

Hogan decided he will not make a bid for the White House in 2024.

The former Maryland governor gave a realist perspective to why he isn’t joining the race – and said he knew he wouldn’t be a front-runner and wouldn’t be able to make the difference he wants to make as a presidential candidate.

Former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan said in an interview aired Sunday that he will not seek the GOP presidential nomination in 2024

Former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan said in an interview aired Sunday that he will not seek the GOP presidential nomination in 2024

Hogan said that former President Donald Trump's candidacy was not the biggest consideration in his decision not to make a White House bid, but rather the ever-growing field and competition

Hogan said that former President Donald Trump’s candidacy was not the biggest consideration in his decision not to make a White House bid, but rather the ever-growing field and competition

'Right now, you have ¿ you know, Trump and DeSantis at the top of the field, they're soaking up all the oxygen, getting all the attention. And then a whole lot of the rest of us in single digits and the more of them you have, the less chance you have for somebody rising up,' Hogan explained even though Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (pictured) has not yet announced a bid

‘Right now, you have – you know, Trump and DeSantis at the top of the field, they’re soaking up all the oxygen, getting all the attention. And then a whole lot of the rest of us in single digits and the more of them you have, the less chance you have for somebody rising up,’ Hogan explained even though Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (pictured) has not yet announced a bid

So far, former President Donald Trump and his once Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley have announced they are running in 2024. They are the most name-recognizable candidates to announce so far.

A few other Republicans have also jumped into the running, including biotech multi-millionaire Vivek Ramaswamy.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has not yet joined the race, but is making his first visit to the first-in-the-nation primary contest state of Iowa next week – sparking speculation that an announcement is impending any day now.

‘I did give it serious consideration and I talked to people everywhere and I talked to my family. And it was a tough decision,’ Hogan said. ‘But I’ve decided that I will not be a candidate for the Republican nomination for president.’

Hogan, an anti-Trumper since Day One, was lauded as one of the most pragmatic and moderate Republican politicians, leaving his post earlier this year as governor of the blue state of Maryland after his two terms.

There were whispers that Hogan would join the 2024 race for president after leaving the State House in Maryland.

‘It’s mostly about the country and about the party,’ Hogan told Costa. ‘It was a personal decision.’

‘It was like, ‘I didn’t need that job. I didn’t need to run for another office,’ he added. ‘I was considering it because I thought it was public service and maybe I can make a difference.’

'I didn't want to have a pile up of a bunch of people fighting,' Hogan said in an interview airing on CBS News' Face the Nation on Sunday morning

‘I didn’t want to have a pile up of a bunch of people fighting,’ Hogan said in an interview airing on CBS News’ Face the Nation on Sunday morning

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley speaks at CPAC on Friday, March 3

Presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy speaks at CPAC on Friday, March 3

Besides Trump, former Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley (left) and biotech ‘anti-woke’ millionaire Vivek Ramaswamy (right) have also announced their candidacies for president

Despite not wanting to muddy the already-growing field of Republicans, Hogan insisted that the Trump factor didn’t play into his decision on whether to launch a bid.

‘This is not just a decision about running for president,’ Costa said in the pre-recorded interview. ‘It’s a decision about running against former President Trump who’s as tough in his opponent as anyone I’ve ever covered. Merciless.’

‘Well, that didn’t really scare me,’ Hogan said. ‘You’re right. It would be a tough race. And he’s very tough.’

‘But, you know, I beat life-threatening cancer,’ he added. ‘So having Trump call me names on Twitter didn’t – didn’t really scare me off.’



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