Despite losing in New Hampshire and Iowa, she is stepping up campaign efforts for South Carolina and beyond
CONCORD, N.H.—Nikki Haley isn’t standing down in her longshot bid to halt Donald Trump’s fast-building momentum toward the Republican nomination.
One day after losing the New Hampshire GOP primary to Trump by double digits, Haley and her team were pushing forward on raising cash, airing new ads and staying on the campaign trail.
The former South Carolina governor was set to hold a rally in her home state Wednesday night ahead of its Feb. 24 primary. It is a herculean task as she trails Trump by more than 30 points in the polling average there. The map after South Carolina is also difficult, though her allies are hopeful she can be competitive in Michigan on Feb. 27.
“Nikki Haley is the only thing standing between another Biden-Trump rematch,” Olivia Perez-Cubas, a Haley campaign spokeswoman, said Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Trump and President Biden were looking ahead to a general election rematch after Trump’s New Hampshire win, though the former president was splitting his attention between taking on Biden and venting his frustration with Haley for not quitting the race.
Trump and his allies said his victory proves he is the leader of the GOP and it is time for the party to unite around his candidacy. Biden’s campaign, meanwhile, is shuffling staff for a 2020 rematch, saying it was clear Trump would be the nominee.
The two men appear headed for an epic general election contest that could stretch as long as nine months and test the patience of voters who, polls show, dislike both the current and former president.
Haley plans to make a fundraising swing next week, which will include events in New York. Wall Street billionaires Stanley Druckenmiller, Henry Kravis, Ken Langone and Cliff Asness are among those co-hosting an event for her on Jan. 30 in New York City, according to an invitation obtained by The Wall Street Journal that was first reported by Bloomberg News.
By Eliza Collins, John McCormick and Alex Leary
