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South Carolina Primary: Does Nikki Haley have a chance in the coming GOP Primary?
Former Carolina Governor Nikki Haley trails behind Donald Trump in South Carolina polls, but refuses to give up.
The battle for the Republican presidential nomination is heating up in South Carolina, where former President Donald Trump and former Governor Nikki Haley are competing for the support of the state’s conservative voters.
Haley, who also served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under Trump, is trailing behind the former president by a wide margin in the polls, but she is not giving up on her “sweet state of South Carolina.”
Haley has a strong connection to South Carolina, where she was elected as the first female and first Indian-American governor in 2010 and re-elected in 2014. She enjoyed high approval ratings during her tenure, and was praised for her handling of the Charleston church shooting in 2015 and the removal of the Confederate flag from the state capitol grounds.
Haley vs Trump
However, her popularity in the state has not translated into support for her presidential bid, as most South Carolina Republicans remain loyal to Trump. According to 538’s polling averages, Trump has 62% of the vote, while Haley has only 25%.
Trump also has the backing of most of the state’s GOP establishment, including Senators Linsey Graham and Tim Scott, Representative Nancy Mace and Governor Henry McMaster. Haley has a personal relationship with some of these endorsers, who were once her allies: McMaster was her deputy governor; she appointed Scott to the Senate; and she campaigned for Mace in the 2022 midterms. But they have all chosen to endorse Trump over Haley, who has been critical of the former president’s role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and his false claims of election fraud.
Trump has a proven track record of winning South Carolina, which is a key state in the Republican primary process. He won the state by 55% in 2020 and by 54% in 2016, according to the state’s election board. South Carolina has also been a reliable predictor of the GOP nominee since 1980, with the exception of 2012, when Newt Gingrich won the state but lost the nomination to Mitt Romney.
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Despite the odds, Haley is determined to stay in the race and challenge Trump in South Carolina, which will hold its primary on Feb. 24.
“New Hampshire is first in the nation … it is not last in the nation … this race is far from over,” Haley said in her concession speech in New Hampshire, where she came in second to Trump.
“The people of South Carolina don’t want a coronation, they want an election. And we are gonna give them one,” Haley said Tuesday night.
However, Haley’s campaign has not impressed the Republican leadership, who see Trump as the inevitable nominee and the best chance to defeat President Joe Biden in 2024.
“I’m looking at the math and the path going forward, and I don’t see it for Nikki Haley,” Republican Party Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said on Fox News Wednesday.
“I think she’s run a great campaign, but I do think there’s a message that is coming out from the voters that is very clear– we need to unite around our eventual nominee, which is going to be Donald Trump.”
What do South Carolina voters think of the race between Trump and Haley?
South Carolina is known for its influential role in picking presidents, and its voters are closely watching the candidates and their messages. Some voters are still undecided, while others have made up their minds. One voter said he would only vote for Haley if she is the last Republican standing.
Trump, who is confident of his victory in South Carolina, said he will intensify his attacks on Haley.
After winning New Hampshire’s primary he told audience members, “I don’t get too angry, I get even.”
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Haley, who has said she is the only one who can stop a Biden-Trump rematch, announced a $4 million ad campaign in her home state and is mobilizing her supporters to reach out to undecided voters.
Americans For Prosperity Action, which endorsed Haley in November, raised more than $70 million, according to its latest public filing. The group told ABC News they’ve knocked on 315,000 in South Carolina and will continue knocking until primary day.
