MANCHESTER, New Hampshire — Former President Donald Trump won the New Hampshire primary Tuesday night, defeating former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and effectively marching his way into the GOP presidential nomination.
The Associated Press called Trump the winner just after polls closed at 8 p.m. With 20% of the vote counted, Trump led 53% to Haley’s 46%.
Trump held multiple late-night rallies in the Granite State as he sought a shock-and-awe campaign to block Haley from a much-needed win. His final rallies featured key endorsements from South Carolina elected officials, including Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), whom Haley appointed to the Senate, in a bid to detract attention away from Haley, a two-term South Carolina governor.
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The former president crushed his rivals by at least 30% during the Iowa caucuses. And the win in New Hampshire, the first time a Republican candidate has won both Iowa and New Hampshire in nearly 50 years, will likely see more of the GOP united behind Trump. The last time a Republican won both early states was Gerald Ford in 1976.
Historically, Trump is in an excellent position to become the GOP’s next standard-bearer. Except for Joe Biden in 2020, no presidential candidate has won the Republican or Democratic nomination and placed below second in the first two nominating states. Trump won both.
Trump’s supporters had predicted he would win even before Tuesday night.
Ward 8 Alderman Ed Sapienza claimed a Trump victory during a Tuesday morning appearance at Memorial High School in Manchester, New Hampshire.
“The question is what’s the over-under?” he said. “Literally the last four or five days, he’s picked up the Big Mo. And anyone who knows anything about politics knows that the Big Mo is what it’s all about. Big momentum.”
Jim Cuthbert, a 65-year-old resident of Concord, New Hampshire, told the Washington Examiner that Trump would eventually win the GOP nomination because “the Left picks on him. And the more they pick on him, the more his followers galvanize.”
“It is a total slam dunk,” said Teri Lomonoco, a 57-year-old teacher and waitress who drove from Albany, New York, to attend a Trump rally in Concord, New Hampshire. “The train left the station in Iowa. There’s nothing stopping it. Nothing. It’s full throttle, full speed ahead.”
Many Republican leaders had already endorsed Trump, but with the win in New Hampshire, more leaders will likely consolidate their support behind him.
The former president faced criticism from Republicans weary of the 91 indictments across four criminal cases Trump is facing. At least two states, Maine and Colorado, have said Trump will not appear on the primary ballot, citing the 14th Amendment, which bars insurrectionists from holding office. The Supreme Court is poised to weigh in.
Haley often said on the campaign trail that “chaos follows Trump,” but it appears that the GOP is sticking with Trump despite his legal drama.
Haley’s supporters hoped that a win in the Granite State would boost her campaign as the race turns to Nevada and South Carolina. Gov. Chris Sununu (R-NH), a fervent Haley backer, told a crowd on Sunday he was “tired of losers” and “tired of Donald Trump.”
But after Tuesday’s loss, Haley’s chances of winning have significantly weakened. Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), who bet his campaign on Iowa, dropped out two days before the New Hampshire. Haley, however, claims her campaign will continue through South Carolina’s Feb. 24 primary.
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Some Trump supporters, however, weren’t so sure.
“I think she’s doing great,” Sandy Thibault, an 83-year-old retiree, summed it up Tuesday morning after she voted in the primary, “but I think he’s doing better.”
