WASHINGTON D.C., DC — Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley suspended her presidential campaign Wednesday morning, leaving Donald Trump as the last remaining major candidate for the 2024 Republican nomination.
The Associated Press asked Haley supporters in early primary states who they will vote for as their Plan B, especially as the country heads toward a 2020 election rematch between Trump and President Joe Biden.
Haley, a former South Carolina governor and U.N. ambassador, was Trump’s first GOP challenger and the only woman in the race.
Bonnie Schultz, a Nikki Haley Supporter and registered Republican in Minnesota planned to write-in Haley's name on the November ballot, saying that she can not commit to supporting either Trump or Biden.
"I can't do it. My conscience won't let me," Schultz said.
Michigan Republican Melissa Prevo, who voted for Haley in the primary, was undecided about who to support in the general election.
"I don't know, I probably won't know until I step into the voting booth," Prevo said. "I don't want to vote for Trump, it makes me sick to my stomach and I also just might write a name in. Or leave it blank."
While campaigning as an avowed conservative, Haley has tended to perform better among more moderate and independent-leaning voters.
Brenda Littleton, a South Carolina Independent voter who supported Haley in the primary said she would be "disappointed" if she is no longer in the race, but is confident in who she will support next.
"I would vote for Trump. I do not want another four years of Biden," Littleton said.
Four in 10 Haley supporters in South Carolina’s GOP primary were self-described moderates, compared with 15% for Trump, according to AP VoteCast, a survey of more than 2,400 voters taking part in the Republican primary in South Carolina, conducted for AP by NORC at the University of Chicago. On the other hand, 8 in 10 Trump supporters identified as conservatives, compared to about half of Haley’s backers.
Valerie Burnett, another Nikki Haley supporter and independent voter from South Carolina said she "can't bring myself to vote for Trump for so many reasons."
"I guess if it boils down to Biden vs Trump, I have to vote for Biden," Burnett said. "It's the lesser of two evils and sometimes I struggle with it. And sometimes I think maybe I shouldn't even bother voting."
According to AP VoteCast surveys of the first three head-to-head Republican contests, 2 in 10 Iowa voters, one-third of New Hampshire voters, and one-quarter of South Carolina voters would be so disappointed by Trump’s renomination that they would refuse to vote for him in the fall.
But by staying in the campaign, Haley drew enough support from suburbanites and college-educated voters to highlight Trump's apparent weaknesses with those groups.
"I think Haley voters are going to be the story of the general election," said Robert Schwartz a Maryland Independent voter who plans to support Haley is his state's primary.
"Who wins those voters is going to matter a lot," he added.
Haley had made clear she doesn't want to serve as Trump's vice president or run on a third-party ticket arranged by the group No Labels. She will leave the race with an elevated national profile that could help her in a future presidential run.
In recent days, she backed off a pledge to endorse the eventual Republican nominee that was required of anyone participating in party debates.
After her announcement Wednesday morning, President Joe Biden released a statement to Haley supporters through the Biden-Harris campaign, basically asking them to take a closer look at the Biden-Harris platform. Here is the statement in full:
“It takes a lot of courage to run for President – that’s especially true in today’s Republican Party, where so few dare to speak the truth about Donald Trump. Nikki Haley was willing to speak the truth about Trump: about the chaos that always follows him, about his inability to see right from wrong, about his cowering before Vladimir Putin.
“Donald Trump made it clear he doesn’t want Nikki Haley’s supporters. I want to be clear: There is a place for them in my campaign. I know there is a lot we won’t agree on. But on the fundamental issues of preserving American democracy, on standing up for the rule of law, on treating each other with decency and dignity and respect, on preserving NATO and standing up to America’s adversaries, I hope and believe we can find common ground.
“We all know this is no ordinary election. And the stakes for America couldn’t be higher. I know that Democrats and Republicans and Independents disagree on many issues and hold strong convictions. That’s a good thing. That’s what America stands for. But I also know this: what unites Democrats and Republicans and Independents is a love for America.”