‘Scrappy’ Haley looks to spin loss in New Hampshire as opportunity in South Carolina

CONCORD, New Hampshire — Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley came up short in the New Hampshire primary to translate her strength with independent voters to a takedown of former President Donald Trump.

The former South Carolina governor spoke to supporters soon after Trump was the projected winner and congratulated him, saying, “He earned it.” With 40% of the vote counted, Trump led 53% to 46% for Haley.

Haley vowed to remain in the race.

“New Hampshire is first in the nation; it is not last in the nation. This race is far from over. There are dozens of states left to go,” Haley said. “The next one is my sweet state of South Carolina.”

Republican presidential candidate former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley speaks at a New Hampshire primary night rally, in Concord, N.H., Tuesday Jan. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

When polls began to close, Haley supporters were jubilant, cheering and waving signs in support of the former South Carolina governor at her campaign headquarters. They hadn’t yet heard the Associated Press called the race for Trump shortly after polls closed at 8 p.m.

“At one point in this campaign, there were 14 of us running and we were at 2% in the polls. Well, I’m a fighter. And I’m scrappy. And now we are the last one standing next to Donald Trump,” Haley said to an eruption of applause.

During her speech, Haley continued to make the argument that she is more electable than her front-running opponent in the general election.

“With Donald Trump, Republicans have lost almost every competitive election. We lost the Senate. We lost the House. We lost The White House. We lost in 2018, we lost in 2020, and we lost in 2022,” Haley said. “The worst kept secret in politics is how badly the Democrats want to run against Donald Trump.”

Haley has repeatedly questioned the mental fitness of both 77-year-old Trump and 81-year-old President Joe Biden. She has called for mental competency tests for politicians over the age of 75 and made the most direct shots at Trump yet in the cycle so far.

“Trump claims he’d do better than me in one of those tests — maybe he would, maybe he wouldn’t. But if he thinks that, then he should have no problem standing on a debate stage with me,” Haley said to cheers from the crowd in trying to bait Trump to a debate stage he’s thus far shunned this primary cycle.

“Most Americans do not want a rematch between Biden and Trump. The first party to retire its 80-year-old candidate is going to be the party that wins this election. And I think it should be the Republicans that win this election,” she said. “So, our fight is not over.”

Haley started the day well, winning all six votes in Dixville Notch. Polls showed her trailing Trump in the Granite State by an average of 19 percentage points heading into the contest, and the final results will likely show a much smaller margin of victory for Trump.

Haley had staked part of her campaign on winning in New Hampshire, where independents make up the largest share of voters and have historically delivered upsets in presidential primaries. The former South Carolina governor has spent considerable resources in the state, often campaigning with Gov. Chris Sununu (R-NH) in an effort to capitalize on the state’s independent streak.

In the Granite State, any independent or unaffiliated voter can participate in the Republican primary. The deadline to switch parties was in October, so Democrats were unable to vote in the primary. Independents were able to vote in either primary on Tuesday and did not need to decide ahead of time which primary they would participate in. 

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Several voters who spoke with the Washington Examiner signaled their support of Haley was based on their opposition to Trump, whose path to the GOP presidential nomination significantly increased after winning the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary.

People in a crowd display signs for Republican presidential candidate former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, not shown, at a New Hampshire primary night rally, in Concord, N.H., Tuesday Jan. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

“I would rather have someone that’s just very calm and collected and gives a good example for the country,” said Christine Dagher, a 34-year-old retail associate, after she voted for Haley on Tuesday morning at Memorial High School in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Chris Masure, a 61-year-old data analyst from Manchester, had hoped Trump wouldn’t win “by much to get people to go, ‘Hey, he’s not invincible,’” yet Trump won the state decisively.

“We’ve been trying; well, some of us have tried to count him out for eight years, and it never happens,” Masure continued. “Nothing stops him.”

Haley was the last remaining candidate to thwart Trump’s march to the nomination after Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) dropped out on Sunday and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie dropped out of the race days before the Iowa caucuses.

While Trump opted for rallies in the Granite State reminiscent of rock concerts, Haley favored holding events at mom-and-pop diners and meet-and-greets at local high schools where she could have intimate encounters with voters. A mother of five children spoke with Haley at an Epping, New Hampshire, event on Sunday, where Haley signed a picture of her daughter Cora’s drawing.

“I think anyone against Donald Trump is a good thing,” said Jessica, the 38-year-old mother who declined to share her last name with the Washington Examiner.

Trump won the Iowa caucuses by 30 points. Haley finished third in Iowa behind DeSantis. Next month’s South Carolina primary is the next state where both Trump and Haley would compete. Haley was twice elected governor of her home state, but almost every top-elected Republican in South Carolina backs Trump.

The Palmetto State’s House Reading Clerk James “Bubba” Cromer defended Haley in an interview with the Washington Examiner at a Haley meet-and-greet in New Hampshire. “I came up here to help her and to see how well-represented we are. She makes us look so good as a state,” Cromer said.

Republican presidential candidate former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley speaks at a New Hampshire primary night rally, in Concord, N.H., Tuesday Jan. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Yet Trump’s allies are already pressuring Haley to leave the race, and those calls are only expected to intensify.

“To me, today is do or die for her. Winning New Hampshire gives her the opportunity to stay in the race, but without New Hampshire, it’s over,” said Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), a key surrogate for Trump, ahead of the results on Tuesday.

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The path forward for Haley remains unclear after the loss in the Granite State. But SFA Fund Inc., the super PAC backing Haley, claimed she surpassed expectations on Tuesday night.

“After taking down Ron DeSantis and a virtual incumbent President struggled to barely get above 50 percent in two states, tonight Nikki Haley performed better than she did in Iowa, surpassed expectations in New Hampshire, and now has the strength and resources she needs to continue on to South Carolina, Michigan, and Super Tuesday,” said Brittany Yanick, a spokeswoman for SFA Fund Inc.