The battle for the Republican presidential nomination is heating up in South Carolina, the place former President Donald Trump and former Governor Nikki Haley are competing for the help of the state’s conservative voters.
Haley, who additionally served because the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations beneath Trump, is trailing behind the previous president by a large margin within the polls, however she is just not giving up on her “candy state of South Carolina.”
Haley has a robust connection to South Carolina, the place she was elected as the primary feminine and first Indian-American governor in 2010 and re-elected in 2014. She loved excessive approval rankings throughout her tenure, and was praised for her dealing with of the Charleston church taking pictures in 2015 and the removing of the Accomplice flag from the state capitol grounds.
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Haley vs Trump
Nonetheless, her recognition within the state has not translated into help for her presidential bid, as most South Carolina Republicans stay loyal to Trump. In accordance with 538’s polling averages, Trump has 62% of the vote, whereas Haley has solely 25%.
Trump additionally has the backing of many of the state’s GOP institution, together with Senators Linsey Graham and Tim Scott, Consultant Nancy Mace and Governor Henry McMaster. Haley has a private relationship with a few of these endorsers, who have been as soon as her allies: McMaster was her deputy governor; she appointed Scott to the Senate; and he or she campaigned for Mace within the 2022 midterms. However they’ve all chosen to endorse Trump over Haley, who has been important of the previous president’s position within the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and his false claims of election fraud.
Trump has a confirmed monitor document of profitable South Carolina, which is a key state within the Republican main course of. He gained the state by 55% in 2020 and by 54% in 2016, in response to the state’s election board. South Carolina has additionally been a dependable predictor of the GOP nominee since 1980, aside from 2012, when Newt Gingrich gained the state however misplaced the nomination to Mitt Romney.
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Regardless of the percentages, Haley is set to remain within the race and problem Trump in South Carolina, which is able to maintain its main on Feb. 24.
“New Hampshire is first within the nation … it’s not final within the nation … this race is much from over,” Haley mentioned in her concession speech in New Hampshire, the place she got here in second to Trump.
“The folks of South Carolina don’t desire a coronation, they need an election. And we’re gonna give them one,” Haley mentioned Tuesday night time.
Nonetheless, Haley’s marketing campaign has not impressed the Republican management, who see Trump because the inevitable nominee and the perfect likelihood to defeat President Joe Biden in 2024.
“I’m trying on the math and the trail going ahead, and I don’t see it for Nikki Haley,” Republican Occasion Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel mentioned on Fox Information Wednesday.
“I feel she’s run an incredible marketing campaign, however I do suppose there’s a message that’s popping out from the voters that may be very clear– we have to unite round our eventual nominee, which goes to be Donald Trump.”
What do South Carolina voters consider the race between Trump and Haley?
South Carolina is understood for its influential position in choosing presidents, and its voters are carefully watching the candidates and their messages. Some voters are nonetheless undecided, whereas others have made up their minds. One voter mentioned he would solely vote for Haley if she is the final Republican standing.
Trump, who’s assured of his victory in South Carolina, mentioned he’ll intensify his assaults on Haley.
After profitable New Hampshire’s main he advised viewers members, “I don’t get too indignant, I get even.”
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Haley, who has mentioned she is the one one who can cease a Biden-Trump rematch, introduced a $4 million advert marketing campaign in her dwelling state and is mobilizing her supporters to achieve out to undecided voters.
Individuals For Prosperity Motion, which endorsed Haley in November, raised greater than $70 million, in response to its newest public submitting. The group advised ABC Information they’ve knocked on 315,000 in South Carolina and can proceed knocking till main day.
