In a primary contest in New Hampshire on Tuesday, Donald Trump will take on Nikki Haley, his sole Republican opponent still standing.
The former US president hopes to completely knock out the former governor of South Carolina’s bid to become the Republican candidate.
Haley, however, is hoping that the independent voting bloc in New Hampshire would assist her in pulling off an unexpected win.
This contest comes after Trump’s overwhelming victory in Iowa last week.
In the general election in November, the chosen Republican nominee will face the Democratic nominee, who will most likely be President Joe Biden.
If Trump does become the Republican candidate, the November 2024 elections between 81-year-old Joe Biden and 77-year-old Donald Trump would be a rematch of the 2020 presidential election.
Democrats are also holding their primary in New Hampshire on Tuesday, but Joe Biden is the first incumbent president not to be on the ballot due to a disagreement between national and local party leaders.
After Florida Governor Ron DeSantis finished well behind in the Iowa caucuses and subsequently announced his resignation and endorsement of Trump, the fight for the Republican nominee shrunk to only two contestants on Sunday.
In most New Hampshire public surveys conducted prior to Mr. DeSantis’ resignation, Trump already had a double-digit advantage. Most polls indicate that most supporters of the Florida governor think that Mr. Trump is the best alternative available.
While speaking at a rally in Laconia, New Hampshire, on Monday night, Trump said, “If you want a losing candidate who puts America last, vote for Nikki Haley.”
He said that in the Republican race, “globalists and radical left communists” were persuading liberals to support Hillary as “they want to run against her because she’s so easy to beat.”
Haley, 52, had earlier claimed at a campaign rally that Trump was consumed by the criminal and civil investigations he was facing. Trump, however, refuted all the accusations claiming political persecution.
Haley said, “When you hear Trump speak, what’s he talking about? Grievances, the past. He’s talking about vendettas.
“Biden’s talking about investigations. Neither one of them is talking about the future. I’m doing this because… I don’t want my kids to live this way.”
The former UN ambassador under Trump’s administration also said, “When you go out on Tuesday, you’re going to decide: do you want more of the same, or do you want something new?”
In contrast to the majority of New Hampshire voters who will cast their votes during the day on Tuesday, a small group of voters in Dixville Notch kept a decades-old custom of voting at midnight. In the resort community, Nikki Haley was selected by all six registered voters over Donald Trump.
Though more moderate than highly conservative Iowa, New Hampshire allows anybody to vote in the primary. In both 2016 and 2020, Mr. Trump emerged victorious as the Republican nominee for the state.
With 40% of New Hampshire voters classified as independents, the Haley campaign is banking on this group of voters to deliver a shock win.
Ozioma Samuel-Ugwuezi
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