Haley’s Campaign Sees Energy From Women Republicans in 2024 Bid
(Bloomberg) -- Nikki Haley’s campaign says it’s generating support from women as she seeks to deliver an upset to frontrunner Donald Trump in Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary and aims to turn the contest into a two-candidate race.
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The former UN Ambassador has appointed a “Women for Nikki” chair in all 50 states, her campaign manager Betsy Ankney told reporters Saturday at an event hosted by Bloomberg in Manchester, New Hampshire.
“We’ve seen great support among women and we’ve also seen a lot of enthusiasm among women,” she said. “They are a huge part of our campaign.”
New Hampshire presents Haley with her strongest opportunity yet to score a victory over Trump, owing to the state’s relatively moderate electorate and the ability for undecided voters to participate in the GOP primary. She had a lackluster showing in Iowa’s Jan. 15 Republican caucus, coming in third place behind Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
She trails Trump by nearly 16 points in the latest RealClearPolitics average of New Hampshire polls, with DeSantis polling in third place with single digits.
Haley is the only woman among the current field of Republican White House aspirants. She’s at times made subtle references to her gender, particularly when sparring against competitors during a string of strong debate performances last fall. In one debate exchange with then-competitor Vivek Ramaswamy, Haley said that she wears heels, but “they’re not a fashion statement — they’re for ammunition.”
Still, Haley hasn’t made her gender the centerpiece of her campaign, Ankney said.
“To be honest, I think other people think about it a lot more than we do,” Ankney said. “She is in fact a woman, she is running for president, she’s the last man standing,” she said, before adding “she’s the last woman standing.”
Haley’s extensive campaigning in New Hampshire has earned her an endorsement from the state’s popular Governor Chris Sununu and Americans for Prosperity, a grassroots organizing group backed by billionaire Charles Koch.
--With assistance from Christian Hall.
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