WASHINGTON, United States: Former presidential hopeful Nikki Haley said Wednesday she will vote for Donald Trump in November’s US election, ending months of silence after she left the Republican race to face Joe Biden.
She announced placing her priorities on a president who will have their allies’ backs and hold their enemies accountable, who will secure the border. She announced to support a president who will support capitalism and freedom, a president who understands them.
She said this at an event for the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank based in Washington.
“Trump hasn’t been perfect on these policies. I’ve made that clear many, many times. But Biden has been a catastrophe. So, I will be voting for Trump,” she added.
The former South Carolina governor, 52, gave up her White House ambitions in March but had not previously indicated whether she would support the man who repeatedly referred to her as “bird brain.”
Still, she continued to win a significant share of the vote in the presidential primaries — underscoring the persistent refusal of a large bloc of Republicans to get behind Trump.
“Zombie Campaign”
The tenacity of the Haley vote prompted the US media to refer to her continued presence on the primary stage, long after the curtain had come down, as a “zombie campaign”.
Trump, 77, has been unable to push Haley’s modest endorsement and will see her public displays of support as a huge boon ahead of the Republican nominating convention in July.
The primaries exposed Trump’s key flaw — his lack of appeal among moderates, independents and college-educated voters, which he will need to defeat Biden.
Trump — who is considering several Republicans as his running mate in November — already indicated in May that he was not considering Haley for the vice-presidential role.
The 77-year-old real estate mogul will keep anyone guessing as to who he will choose as his running mate on the November ballot.
“Nikki Haley is out of the question for the V.P. slot, but I wish her the best of luck!” Trump wrote on his platform Truth Social.
