CHARLESTON, South Carolina — Former President Donald Trump defeated former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley by double digits in South Carolina, her home state, marking his fifth straight win in the 2024 primary schedule.
The Associated Press called the race at 7 p.m. — the same time the polls closed in the Palmetto State.
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Trump began speaking at his watch party just minutes after polls closed, telling attendees, “This was a little sooner than we anticipated. An even bigger win than we anticipated.
“I was just informed that we got double the number of votes that has ever been received in the great state of South Carolina,” the former president claimed.
Notably, Trump did not mention Haley once in his speech.
Just over 10 minutes after the polls closed, the South Carolina Republican Party released a statement on Trump’s win.
“South Carolina is Trump Country again!” South Carolina GOP Chairman Drew McKissick said. “It was true in 2016 and 2020, and South Carolina Republicans just put an exclamation point on it today. His Promises Made, Promises Kept agenda is what strengthened our country before, and can do it again. If we want to grow our economy, close our Southern border and save our country from a radical leftist agenda, then we need to unite our Party right now and put Donald Trump BACK in the White House this November.”
The Trump victory is an especially embarrassing loss for Haley, who was a popular two-term governor in South Carolina. She and her allies poured more than 14 times the amount of money as Trump and his into the primary but still fell short.
Before the South Carolina primary, Haley claimed she needed to do better with each successive nominating contest starting with Iowa, then New Hampshire, followed by South Carolina.
Haley was asked about the remarks during a press gaggle on Saturday morning after she cast a ballot in the primary.
“We’ll find out,” Haley told members of the press. “We’re gonna find out today. Y’all will be deciding that as much as you want. I think my goal has always been to be competitive in South Carolina. And, you know, for voters to trust me.”
The Trump campaign likely will move on to general election campaigning against President Joe Biden despite Haley’s insistence she will continue to run through Super Tuesday.
In a statement on Saturday, a Trump spokesman said Haley’s “delusion is clouding her judgment.”
“The primary ends tonight and it is time to turn to the general election so we can defeat Crooked Joe and end his assault on the American people,” Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said.
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Trump’s allies are consistently pressuring Haley to exit the race to allow Trump to focus more on defeating Biden and collaborating with the Republican National Committee.
“She should go ahead and drop out like this thing is over, Donald Trump’s our nominee,” Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) told the Washington Examiner in an interview Friday evening at the Black Conservative Federation gala. “We all know. Time to be focused on November winning back the White House.”
