Flake to visit New Hampshire amid 2020 speculation

Sen. Jeff Flake will visit New Hampshire next month amid increasing speculation that the retiring Arizona Republican may mount a 2020 primary challenge to President Trump

U.S. Senator @JeffFlake will return to the Institute on Monday, October 1! This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. *Register at https://t.co/9qXVVEZApv #nhpolitics #FITN pic.twitter.com/zBsFVbV9m6

— NHIOP (@nhiop) September 25, 2018

Flake is set to speak at Saint Anselm’s New Hampshire Institute of Politics and give an address titled “After the Deluge: A Rejection of Destructive Politics and a Return to Principle.”

The visit will be Flake’s second this year to New Hampshire, the nation’s first presidential primary state and second contest after the Iowa caucuses.

{mosads}The visit could fuel further speculation that Flake, a frequent Trump critic who is retiring in January, could run for president either as an Independent or a Republican.

“It’s not in my plans. But I’ve not ruled anything out. I do hope that somebody runs on the Republican side other than the president, if nothing else, simply to remind Republicans what conservatism is and what Republicans have traditionally stood for,” Flake said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” in May.

There is also speculation that Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R), who ran for president in 2016, could challenge Trump in 2020 as well.

Kasich has also visited New Hampshire and represents a perennial swing state. No Republican has ever won the presidency without winning Ohio in the general election.

Potential Democratic 2020 contenders are being much less coy about their ambitions, with several making multiple trips to crucial states. 

Former Vice President Joe Biden has so far made trips to Iowa, Florida and South Carolina, among others. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has visited Iowa, North Carolina and New Hampshire; Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has visited Michigan, Wisconsin and Ohio; and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) has made trips to Florida, Virginia and Ohio. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) has made trips to Florida, Michigan and Wisconsin.