Is Nikki Haley’s decision to stay in the race good for the Republican?

Xiaodong Fang
4 min readJan 29, 2024

After losing Iowa and New Hampshire, Nikki Haley, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and governor of South Carolina, has recently announced her decision to stay in the race for the Republican nomination in the 2024 presidential election. This move has sparked discussions about the potential implications of her candidacy for the Republican Party.

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

While some have raised concerns about the impact of her stay in the race on both the party and former President Donald Trump, there are several factors to consider when evaluating the potential effects of Haley’s candidacy.

Appeal and Mobilization of the Republican Base

Nikki Haley’s decision to stay in the race for the Republican nomination is not expected to hurt the GOP for several reasons. First, her candidacy may actually help mobilize the Republican voter base, as she has a strong appeal to Republicans and Republican-leaning independents. This could potentially benefit the party by energizing supporters and attracting a broader range of voters.

“… she (Haley) is appealing to the Republicans and Republican-leaning independents that Trump needs to substantially bring home in November to beat Biden.”

- Politico

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Xiaodong Fang

Political Scientist studied and worked at #Georgetown #IowaState #JamesMadison | Observing #Elections and #China