Rochester, New Hampshire – She had a weeks-long spat with her Republican presidential rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, ahead of the Iowa caucuses.
But now that the race for the 2024 Republican nomination has shifted to New Hampshire, Nikki Haley says former President Donald Trump is “the person I want. Trump is the person I want.”
Haley narrowly missed DeSantis in the Iowa caucuses Monday night, finishing second to the former president. Trump, the likely front-runner in the Republican race seeking a third consecutive White House, erased his previous victory margin in the Republican presidential caucuses, winning 51% of the vote in Iowa.
But the latest polls in New Hampshire (which votes second overall on the Republican calendar and has its first primary next Tuesday) show Ms. Haley is competitive with Mr. Trump, while Ms. DeSantis is in the single digits. He is now in 3rd place due to the difference.
DeSantis is campaigning in New Hampshire, but most of his staff is out in South Carolina.
Republican presidential candidate and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks at an event in Hampton, New Hampshire, January 17, 2024. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Addressing voters in Hampton, New Hampshire, on Wednesday afternoon, DeSantis cited the caucus results and said, “I came in second place. She didn't, so that's just the reality. I don't know why it happened,” he said. I'm going to turn it. ”
Haley pushed back and touted his finish at Iowa.
“We started at 2%. We finished at 20%,” she said in a Fox News interview ahead of a campaign event at the American Legion Garrison in Rochester, New Hampshire. “If someone doesn't see momentum in this, that's their problem. That's not my problem. But we're going to keep going further. We're well above 30% here.”
Click here for the latest voting numbers in New Hampshire's Republican presidential primary
Haley, a former two-term South Carolina governor who later served as the Trump administration's ambassador to the United Nations, reiterated this week that the upcoming campaign will be a two-person race with Trump.
Former United Nations Ambassador and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley poses for a photo with Republican presidential candidate supporters in Rochester, New Hampshire on January 17, 2024. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
“You can't see Ron in New Hampshire and South Carolina. Anyone can see it,” Haley argued.
The latest polls in South Carolina, where the South's first primary will be held on February 24, show Trump with a double-digit lead over Haley, with DeSantis in third place, one digit behind.
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“He's close to zero for me in both states,” Haley said of DeSantis. “So it's more about his survival. We're strong. It's a two-person race here in New Hampshire, it's a two-person race in South Carolina. So we're focused on Trump.”
Haley then said to the former president, “You see how close we are in New Hampshire, and it's the same in South Carolina. We're going to try to get closer. That's the goal. That's why we're doing Trump.'' I'll chase you. ”
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Wednesday, January 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke) (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
While Haley was wrapping up her campaign in Rochester, Trump was preparing to take the stage at a rally in nearby Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
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The former president took shots at Haley multiple times, claiming she would “never secure the border” and “want to gut Medicare and Social Security.”
A day earlier, President Trump, at a rally in Atkinson, New Hampshire, accused Haley of being “not a great” ambassador to the United Nations, claiming she wasn't “tough enough” in dealing with her adversaries.
“He honestly thinks that if he says something, it will come true,” Haley told a crowd in Rochester, accusing Trump of lying about her.
She told Fox News that Trump “recognizes we are a threat” and is “throwing a tantrum.”
Haley's campaign then posted a video of past clips of President Trump praising her.
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