GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) – If Chris Christie runs for president, there’s little doubt people will see plenty of the town halls the New Jersey governor is known for. That anything-goes format is his comfort zone, and voters tend to like it.
Christie spent hours answering questions at two town hall-style events during the past week in South Carolina – one planned, the other an impromptu session in the back room of a bar. He’ll be doing the same in Iowa in the days ahead.
These get-togethers “are something that I’ve been doing for a long time in New Jersey,” Christie told the crowd at Tommy’s Country Ham House in Greenville.
To be precise, he’s done 138 such events, most in New Jersey. He said he will do many more.
Christie’s aptitude for answering questions on the fly pleases his audiences and fits well in states such as New Hampshire where voters expect close-up interaction, repeatedly, from presidential candidates. But that tradition is less robust in South Carolina and elsewhere, where advertising and organization count for more.