Former governor and ex-ambassador Nikki Haley has announced her withdrawal from the race for the Republican US presidential nomination. Her party rival Donald Trump must now seek the votes of those who voted for her in the primaries, Haley said on Wednesday in Charleston, South Carolina. “It is now up to Donald Trump to win the votes of those in our party and beyond who did not support him, and I hope he does that,” Haley said.
US media had previously reported on the withdrawal of the 52-year-old, who had suffered another clear defeat against ex-President Trump in the primaries on “Super Tuesday”.
Haley was Trump's only remaining party rival in the race to run against incumbent Joe Biden in the November presidential election. After Haley's exit, Trump is de facto certain of becoming the presidential candidate. The candidate against Biden will be formally nominated at a Republican party conference in July.
On “Super Tuesday,” the right-wing populist won in 14 of the 15 states in which the Republicans held primaries. Haley only won in the small New England state of Vermont.
The 52-year-old had already lost the previous primaries since January to Trump, except in the capital Washington. The former US ambassador to the United Nations and ex-governor of the state of South Carolina was therefore under strong pressure from her own party to drop out of the race before Super Tuesday.
