Governor Chris Sununu's intentions for the 2024 presidential primary will get another round of speculation with a weekend trip with his father to Des Moines, Iowa.

The governor will leave the state Friday afternoon and return Sunday morning.

The reason for the trip is to attend the Run GenZ Summer Summit, where he will join former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad to talk primary politics. They will have a "fireside chat" to discuss the importance of New Hampshire as the traditional first presidential primary and Iowa starting the primary season with the caucus.

Their importance in the 2024 race has been up for discussion as the Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee is considering other states to hold the first in the nation primary in 2024.

Sununu's name is one of many brought up as a potential Republican candidate in 2024. He has been coy about his intentions, and has not ruled it out when asked.

Plausible Deniability

The motivation of any politician who makes a trip to Iowa is going to be suspect, according to SNHU Civic Scholar and founder of NH Political Capital Dean Spiliotes.

"There's nothing for him to lose. He's got plausible deniability. 'You know I just came out to talk and I'm focused on re-election and we'll see what happens down the road and I'm not planning as of now to run for president and I have the best job in the world,'"Spiliotes told Seacoast Current. "There's nothing wrong with raising a little speculation."

In other words, it's the same thing he's been saying during national interviews in recent months.

He told Jake Tapper on CNN's State of the Union July 10 that he is "addicted" to New Hampshire and focused on his re-election.

"Well, just for the record, that wasn't a no," Tapper said.

He came in at #9 on the Washington Post's list of the Top 10 potential 2024 presidential candidates in February.  Donald Trump topped the list.

GenZ is a non-profit organization that says its mission is to prepare Generation Z leaders to "take action, take charge and take control of the future" by supporting conservative political values like limited government.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNH

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