Nikki Haley, a former South Carolina governor who served as Trump’s U.N. ambassador, was the former president’s last remaining Republican 2024 rival
Nikki Haley is wrapping up her 2024 Republican presidential campaign, thirteen months after its launch in Charleston, South Carolina. Multiple sources have confirmed this decision to Fox News Digital.
The former two-term governor of South Carolina, who later served as the U.N. ambassador in Donald Trump’s administration, is anticipated to announce her decision on Wednesday morning. While she’s expected to suspend her campaign for the GOP nomination, there’s no immediate indication that she will endorse Trump.
Haley is set to address the public at 10 a.m. ET from Charleston. It’s expected that she’ll highlight how her candidacy sparked important discussions and provided an alternative perspective to Trump.
On Super Tuesday, the former president won decisively in 14 out of 15 states where Republican presidential primaries and caucuses were held across the country. This victory significantly advances Trump’s position in securing the GOP nomination, positioning him for a potential rematch with President Biden in the general election.
Nikki Haley, who had previously indicated her intention to remain in the race at least until Super Tuesday, did not hold any public events or speeches on Tuesday night. Instead, she privately watched the election results with her campaign team and has not yet made any announcements about her future plans.
Trump’s near-total dominance of the Super Tuesday states, with the exception of Vermont where Haley narrowly prevailed, has amplified calls from fellow Republicans for Haley to withdraw from the presidential race.
“I believe it’s time for her to step back and allow the party to unite firmly behind Donald Trump, enabling him to face Joe Biden and defeat him in November,” stated Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders during an interview on Fox News “America Reports” on Tuesday afternoon. Sanders, a former White House press secretary under Trump who has endorsed him, emphasized the importance of party unity behind Trump’s candidacy.
Despite mounting pressure for her to withdraw from the race, Nikki Haley appeared resolute in a “Fox and Friends” interview on Tuesday morning, as the Super Tuesday contests began. She emphasized her commitment to continuing the fight for those who seek representation, stating, “As much as everybody wants to go and push me out, I’m not ready to get out yet. I’m still sitting there fighting for the people that want a voice.”
Following the primaries, the Haley campaign released a statement on Tuesday night expressing gratitude for the support received from millions of Americans nationwide. The statement highlighted Haley’s historic win in Vermont, where she became the first Republican woman to win two presidential primary contests.
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The Haley campaign pointed out that in several Super Tuesday states, Nikki Haley garnered significant support, capturing anywhere from a quarter to a third of the vote in GOP contests. They argued that this demonstrates a substantial portion of Republican primary voters expressing concerns about Donald Trump.
The campaign emphasized the importance of addressing these concerns, stating that true unity within the party is essential for success. They believe that addressing the issues raised by these voters will not only benefit the Republican Party but also contribute to making America better as a whole.
During his 20-minute victory speech on Tuesday night in front of supporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, Trump did not mention Nikki Haley. Additionally, his campaign did not offer immediate comment or release any statement following the news of Haley’s withdrawal early Wednesday morning.
In a statement on Wednesday morning, Taylor Budowich, who leads the Trump-aligned super PAC Make America Great Again Inc., congratulated the former president for swiftly defeating his opponents. He expressed confidence that the same movement that propelled President Trump to victory in the primaries will also lead him to success in the general election.
While it was indicated that Nikki Haley wasn’t expected to endorse Trump immediately, a top surrogate for Haley, Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina, told Fox News on Wednesday morning that she is likely to endorse the former president, stating, “if not today, she will.”
Norman, who endorsed Haley a year ago, remarked in a “Fox and Friends” interview that ultimately, Haley will lend her support to Trump. He expressed his intention to personally reach out and call Trump in the coming hours.
In a Republican presidential field that once boasted over a dozen candidates last summer, Nikki Haley emerged as the final remaining rival to Trump. Trump has maintained a commanding lead in the GOP race for months, as he pursues his third consecutive White House bid.
Haley, who extensively campaigned in Iowa and New Hampshire – the initial states in the Republican presidential nominating calendar – in both 2021 and 2022, officially kicked off her 2024 campaign in February of the previous year.
Throughout much of last year, Haley’s poll numbers remained in the single digits, presenting her with a challenging path to securing the nomination. However, her strong performances in the late summer and autumn during the initial three GOP primary debates propelled her momentum forward, leading to a significant surge in her poll numbers.
This surge gained momentum in December, as Haley began to close the gap with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in both the latest Iowa polls and national surveys. She emerged as a distant second to Trump in the polls, marking a notable rise in her candidacy.
Haley quickly ascended to second place in New Hampshire, narrowing the gap with Trump, thanks in part to a significant endorsement from Republican Governor Chris Sununu.
In the Iowa caucuses held on January 15, Trump secured a resounding victory with a 30-point margin over DeSantis, while Haley closely trailed behind the Florida governor in third place.
DeSantis, who had been lagging behind in New Hampshire polls and was positioned in the single digits, withdrew from the race two days before the primary. This decision transformed the GOP nomination contest into a head-to-head race between Haley and Trump.
Benefiting from strong support from independents, Haley secured 43% of the vote in New Hampshire, trailing Trump by 11 points.
Following Trump’s decisive victories in the Nevada and U.S. Virgin Islands GOP caucuses in early February, attention shifted to Haley’s home state of South Carolina.
Despite Haley’s relentless campaigning efforts in South Carolina, Trump made only a few stops there. However, the former president received substantial backing from South Carolina’s governor, both senators and numerous state lawmakers and officials.
Despite mounting pressure from fellow Republicans for her to withdraw from the race, Nikki Haley remained defiant.
“I refuse to quit. South Carolina will vote on Saturday. But on Sunday, I’ll still be running for president. I’m not going anywhere,” Haley emphasized in a significant speech delivered a couple of days before her home state primary.
She made it clear that she had no fear of facing retribution from Trump.
Days before the South Carolina primary, Nikki Haley conveyed a resolute message to her supporters, stating, “I will take the bruises. I will take the cuts. This is going to be messy and I’ll take the hurt, because I believe nothing good comes easy. Sometimes we have to feel pain to appreciate the blessing.”
Haley intensified her verbal attacks on Trump while on the campaign trail, criticizing his legal issues, controversial statements regarding NATO and the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, as well as his mockery of her husband, who is serving on a military tour overseas.
Additionally, she continued to highlight the verbal gaffes of both Trump, aged 77, and President Biden, aged 81, questioning their mental and physical fitness. Haley argued that it was time for a new generation to lead the country.
Despite trailing Trump by 20 points in South Carolina and experiencing an even bigger defeat in Michigan’s Republican presidential primary, Nikki Haley continued her campaign efforts. She embarked on a nationwide campaign tour across the 15 states holding GOP nominating contests on Super Tuesday, March 5.
Trump entered Super Tuesday with significant momentum, having swept Michigan’s GOP convention and securing large victories in the Missouri, Idaho, and North Dakota caucuses.
“We’ve been launching like a rocket to the Republican nomination,” Trump declared Saturday night at a rally in Richmond, Virginia, highlighting his successes in Michigan, Missouri, and Idaho.
However, despite the daunting odds she faced, Haley remained determined to stay in the GOP nomination race at least through Super Tuesday. On Sunday, she achieved her first victory in the 2024 race.
This past weekend, Nikki Haley secured a significant victory, topping Trump by roughly 30 points in the Republican primary in Washington D.C. This win marked a historic moment as Haley became the first woman to win a GOP presidential primary or caucus, capturing 19 delegates in the process.
Despite facing strong competition, Haley maintained formidable fundraising and garnered substantial support from independents during the GOP primaries. She reiterated her commitment to staying in the race as an alternative option for voters dissatisfied with the prospect of a Biden-Trump rematch.
In an interview with Fox News’ Bill Melugin on Saturday, Haley stated, “We’re going to go as long as we’re competitive,” though she did not explicitly define what “competitive” entails.
Fox News contributor Karl Rove, a seasoned GOP strategist known for his role in securing former President George W. Bush’s two presidential election victories, highlighted that Super Tuesday marked “a strong night for Donald Trump.”
However, Rove pointed out that despite Trump’s successes, Nikki Haley’s significant portion of the vote in several Super Tuesday states suggests that there’s still work needed to unify the Republican Party. He emphasized that the high command at Team Trump should be concerned about this and focus on uniting the party further.
Longtime Republican strategist David Kochel observed that both the Trump and Biden campaigns will be vying for the support of Nikki Haley’s voters, indicating that Haley’s presence in the race could have implications for both parties.
On Super Tuesday, President Biden, who faced nominal challenges from Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota and best-selling author and spiritual adviser Marianne Williamson, secured significant victories in the Democratic contests.
Biden was poised to win nearly all of the 1,420 Democratic delegates up for grabs on Tuesday, bringing him much closer to the 1,968 delegates needed to secure renomination.
However, Biden experienced a setback as the Fox News Decision Desk projected that he would lose the Democratic caucus in American Samoa to extreme long-shot candidate and entrepreneur Jason Palmer. Palmer was expected to win 4 delegates, compared to the president’s two, marking Biden’s first defeat in the 2024 Democratic nominating calendar.
Palmer was expected to win 4 delegates, to the president’s two on the Pacific Ocean island territory. It was Biden’s first defeat in the 2024 Democratic nominating calendar.
More troubling for Biden was the continued discontent at the ballot box over his support for Israel in its war with Hamas.
A week after 13% of Democratic primary voters in Michigan cast ballots for “uncommitted” in protest of the president’s backing of Israel, nearly 20% voted “uncommitted” in Minnesota’s primary.