Trump beats Haley in New Hampshire
Moves closer to White House nomination
MANCHESTER (Reuters) – Donald Trump cruised to victory in New Hampshire’s Republican presidential contest on Tuesday.
It brings him closer to a November rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden even as his only remaining rival, former US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley, vowed to soldier on.
“This race is far from over,” Haley told her supporters at a primary night party in Concord, challenging Trump to debate her. “I’m a fighter. And I’m scrappy. And now we’re the last one standing next to Trump.”
At his own party in Nashua, Trump opened his speech by mocking Haley, calling her an “imposter” and saying, “She’s doing, like, a speech like she won. She didn’t win. She lost . ... She had a very bad night.”
His remarks followed a series of angry posts on his Truth Social app, calling her “DELUSIONAL.”
With at least 75 percent of the expected vote tallied, according to Edison, Trump held a comfortable 54.2 percent to 43.7 percent for Haley.
Haley had hoped the northeastern state’s sizeable cadre of independent voters would carry her to an upset win that might loosen Trump’s iron grip on the Republican Party.
Trump became the first Republican to sweep competitive votes in both Iowa – where he won by a record-setting margin eight days ago – and New Hampshire since 1976, when the two states cemented their status as the first nominating contests.
While the final margin was still unclear, the results will likely increase calls from some Republicans for Haley to drop out of the race.
Her campaign vowed in a memo on Tuesday to push forward until “Super Tuesday” in early March, when Republicans in 15 states and one territory vote on the same day.
The next contest is scheduled for Feb. 24 in South Carolina, where Haley was born and served two terms as governor.
Despite her ties, however, Trump has racked up endorsements from most of the state’s Republican figures, and opinion polls show him with a wide lead.
Haley finished third in Iowa, just behind Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, while focusing much of her early campaign on New Hampshire, where the more moderate electorate was expected to offer perhaps her best chance of winning a state over Trump.