News/Commentary

Nikki Haley confident she’ll be able to overtake Trump in South Carolina despite MASSIVE deficit

November 18, 2023 | | Print Article

They say that “hope springs eternal,” but presidential GOP candidate Nikki Haley is pushing that old axiom to the limits.

The former South Carolina governor is trailing former President Donald Trump by a soul-crushing 30.5 points (Trump, 49.3%; Haley, 18.8%) according to the RealClearPolitics average of polls in Haley’s home state, but she still believes she’s going to beat him.

“Get used to this face, I’m not going anywhere,” Haley told attendees at a townhall in Iowa on Friday. “Our goal was, I’m trying to, one, earn your trust, earn your vote.”

“The way this will happen is, this is not 2016 all over again,” she continued.

She laid out her perceived path to victory.

“If you notice, if you don’t make the debate stage, you’re pretty much out,” she explained. “We started with 12 candidates. The first debate was 8 candidates. The second debate was 7 candidates. The last debate was 5 candidates. This debate next month, it’ll be December 6 in Alabama, I expect there to be 3 candidates on the stage.”

“So going into Iowa, we’re going to see 3 to 4 people fight for Iowa,” she predicted. “Couple people are going to drop, and then we’re going to go on to New Hampshire and then we’re going to fight for Granite Staters. Then more people are going to drop, and then I go head-to-head with Trump in my home state of South Carolina and we take it.”

Easy-peasy, right?

Well, not if reactions to her plan are any indication of her home-state advantage.

“Not one for making predictions in politics, but if ever there was a time to make an exception, this would be it,” stated one user on X. “Nikki Haley is going to finish THIRD in her home state, at which point her campaign will fizzle out ahead of Super Tuesday.”

Ron DeSantis may currently be trailing Haley by a little over eight points in South Carolina (DeSantis, 10.5%), but, according to the Associated Press, the supporters of one of Haley’s key “drop-outs,” South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, are now throwing their support to Florida’s governor.

“Ron DeSantis has picked up 10 endorsements in South Carolina from former backers of Sen. Tim Scott’s presidential campaign, support the Florida governor is hoping can shore up his strength in the first-in-the-South primary state as the 2024 GOP field continues to consolidate,” AP reported on Friday.

“With DeSantis’ total of 68 endorsements from elected officials in South Carolina, he has more than have been announced by any other presidential candidate, his campaign said,” according to the outlet.

“Tim Scott supporters are shifting to DeSantis,” one user noted on X.

Some on X believe Haley knows she can’t beat Trump, and she never intended to.

“Neocon Nikki mouse is running for VP. Always was,” one user stated. “This is gaslighting.”

Melissa Fine
Latest posts by Melissa Fine (see all)

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.

Latest Articles