Nikki Haley defiantly refused to drop out of the race for the Republican presidential nomination after losing to Donald Trump in New Hampshire on Tuesday.
The 2024 hopeful said the fight is “far from over” and that she is a “crappy fighter” who is “just getting started.”
Haley had bet that she would do better in New Hampshire after finishing a disappointing third place in the Iowa caucuses last week – but she failed again.
Instead, the former United Nations ambassador was quick to concede to Trump on Tuesday evening as early predictions came in, saying she was looking forward to next month's primary election in her home state of South Carolina.
“I want to congratulate Donald Trump on his victory — he deserved it, and I want to acknowledge that,” Haley, 52, told her supporters at her election night rally in Concord, New Hampshire.
“You've all heard the talk in the political class.” They're falling over themselves and saying this race is over. It's not over!' she announced.
With a third of the votes counted, Trump was ahead of Haley 53 percent to 45 percent.
What had been a three-person contest until the weekend turned into a two-way fight for the Republican nomination after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis dropped out of the race on Sunday.
Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley lost her primary election in a four-way race with Donald Trump in New Hampshire on Tuesday
Disappointed Haley supporters in Concord, New Hampshire, react as primary election results emerged Tuesday night showing her behind Donald Trump
Now Haley and Trump are the only two vying for the Republican nomination in the 2024 general election.
“New Hampshire is first in the country – it is not last in the country.” This race is far from over. “There are dozens of states left to give,” Haley said in her concession speech, adding, “The next one is my sweet state of South Carolina.”
With her two children Rena, 26, and Nalin, 22, in the audience, Haley previewed that she is now heading back to South Carolina – where she hopes to finally score a win in her home state.
However, the Palmetto State is holding its fourth primary contest after the Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada primaries. It's clear from her comments Tuesday that Haley wants to largely ignore Nevada, where she's in the primary and can't win delegates from the state.
Haley doesn't appear to be doing much better in the South Carolina primary, where she trails Trump by 30 points, 52 percent to 21.8 percent, according to a RealClearPolitics poll average.
Trump's commanding victory in New Hampshire proves that the former president still has a firm grip on Republicans, even in a state with more moderate Republicans.
Haley hands the New Hampshire primary to Donald Trump while her children Nalin, 22, and Rena, 26, are on stage
“New Hampshire is first in the country – it is not last in the country,” Haley said in her remarks Tuesday in New Hampshire. “This race is far from over.” Dozens of states still have to disappear.
Haley's daughter Rena and her husband Joshua stand alongside the 2024 candidates at their election night rally in Concord, New Hampshire, on Tuesday, January 23
Many Democratic voters in New Hampshire told that they had switched their registration to undecided so they could cast their ballot for Haley in the Republican primary, hoping to thwart Trump's lead.
Polls just days before the Jan. 23 primary, when DeSantis was still under consideration, placed Haley in a solid second place — but still about 20 percentage points behind Trump.
In the month before the primary, Haley came within a narrow margin of beating Trump. A January 12-15 poll showed Haley and Trump even dead at 40 percent each.
Haley captured New Hampshire after leaving Iowa on January 15 with 19.1 percent of the vote. It held an average of three official events each day, as well as intimate living room political stops in restaurants, pubs and markets.
Since the Iowa election, Trump has held a rally in various New Hampshire cities every day except Thursday. He also made off-record stops in the nation's first primary state, such as at his campaign headquarters.
As voters emerged from the polls on Tuesday in the blue city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, May told that they had cast their ballot for Haley – while others wrote on behalf of President Joe Biden.
Only one voter said they voted for Trump, claiming that Haley had “no chance.”
Donald Trump won the New Hampshire primary despite the state's more left-leaning electorate