The New Hampshire Republican debate scheduled for Thursday night has officially been canceled after Republican candidate Nikki Haley said she would only debate former President Donald Trump – or President Joe Biden.
A day after the Iowa caucuses, the presidential race has shifted to New Hampshire, with the Granite State a vital proposition for Haley, who finished third in Iowa but is within striking distance of Trump in some New Hampshire polls is.
During her speech to fans Monday night at the West Des Moines Marriott, Haley announced that she would make the primary a “two-person race.”
On Tuesday she started acting like this.
“We had five great debates this election campaign.” Unfortunately, Donald Trump avoided all of them. He has nowhere to hide anymore. The next debate I have will be with either Donald Trump or Joe Biden. I’m looking forward to it,” she posted on X on Tuesday morning.
The New Hampshire debate scheduled for Thursday evening was canceled after Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley (right) said Tuesday she would only debate former President Donald Trump or President Joe Biden – and not take part in a rematch with the Florida governor , Ron DeSantis (left), attend.
On Tuesday morning, Nikki Haley posted a tweet suggesting that she would not face Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on stage in New Hampshire again
A day after the Iowa caucuses, the presidential race has shifted to New Hampshire, with the Granite State a perilous proposition for Nikki Haley (pictured), who finished third in Iowa but within striking distance in some respects Trump is leading polls in New Hampshire.
The move angered her rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who came in second by a wide margin to Trump in Iowa but performed in single digits in New Hampshire.
“Nikki Haley is afraid of debate because she doesn't want to answer the tough questions, like how she got rich off Boeing after giving them millions of dollars in taxpayer money as governor of South Carolina,” DeSantis posted Tuesday X
“The reality is that she's not running for the nomination, she's running to be Trump's running mate,” the Florida governor claimed.
He said their refusal to debate amounted to a “snub” to New Hampshire voters – and accused Trump of doing the same.
Trump did not participate in a single Republican primary debate and beat DeSantis in Iowa by about 30 points.
DeSantis had staked much of his campaign on a good performance against Trump in Iowa while blocking Haley's advancement.
None of the goals were fully achieved.
“I look forward to debating two empty podium spots in the Granite State this week,” DeSantis said.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis responded an hour later that Haley was “scared” of a debate. After a disappointing second-place finish in Iowa, DeSantis has vowed to press on despite trailing both Trump and Haley in New Hampshire
Former President Donald Trump delivers a victory speech in downtown Des Moines, Iowa, on Monday evening. Trump handily won the Iowa caucuses against DeSantis and Haley, with DeSantis finishing a distant second. DeSantis had agreed to a new debate, but Haley declined
The debate moderators, ABC News and WMUR-TV, announced later Tuesday that Thursday's debate was adjourned.
“Our intent was to host a debate following the Iowa caucuses, but we always knew it would depend on the candidates and the outcome of the race,” an ABC News spokesperson said in a statement.
Trump, Haley, Trump and DeSantis all qualified for the Granite State debate, as did former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who dropped out of the presidential debate on Wednesday.
“As a result, while our extensive election coverage continues, ABC News and WMUR-TV will not be continuing Thursday's Republican presidential primary debate in New Hampshire,” the spokesman said.
CNN also planned to host a Republican debate on Sunday, January 21, two days before the New Hampshire primary.