Christie heads to Chicago to build support for 2016
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - Gov. Chris Christie is spending Abraham Lincoln's birthday in the Land of Lincoln as he works to build support for a potential 2016 run.
The Republican will attend two round table meetings Thursday afternoon in Chicago and then deliver the keynote address at the 8th Annual Northwest Suburban Republican Lincoln Day Dinner in Rolling Meadows, Illinois.
The trip comes shortly after Christie's backers launched a political action committee that allows him to raise money and pay for travel as he weighs a bid.
Ryan Higgins, the Republican committeeman for Schaumburg Township, who is helping to organize the dinner, said he expected between 850 and 900 people at the sold-out event - exceeding a previous record of about 650 people who attended when Kentucky Senator Rand Paul headlined in 2013.
Tickets to the dinner cost $100 or $250 for a private reception and photo op with Christie, and Higgins said he expected the event to gross $150,000.
Christie's PAC did not respond to questions about who would be attending the closed-door events. But Christie's top political adviser, Mike DuHaime, said one of the meet-and-greets will be hosted by Motorola Solutions CEO Greg Brown. Brown is an alumnus of Rutgers University and was appointed to the school's Board of Governors by Christie in 2012.
Christie was a frequent visitor to Illinois last year as he worked in his former role as chairman of the Republican Governors Association to elect Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner.
Christie also traveled to Iowa earlier this week and will head to New Hampshire for a similar event on Monday. Both are crucial early-voting states.