Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley cut down former United States Donald Trump's lead in New Hampshire to within four percentage points in the state's latest polling.
Support for Haley has surged since last month as nearly a third of voters in the Granite State who are likely to cast a ballot in New Hampshire's Republican primary have expressed support for the female candidate in a Saint Anselm College poll that was released this week.
Nikki Haley Cuts Donald Trump's Lead
Haley doubled her support in New Hampshire since September and is already ten percentage points ahead of where she was during the November survey by CNN and the University of New Hampshire.
The former South Carolina governor has secured second place in the state but is still trailing behind Trump. The latter led the former by 14 percentage points in the Saint Anselm poll released earlier this month. He continues leading all of his Republican rivals in state-level and national polls across the United States, as per USA Today.
Despite her success, Haley's momentum comes on the heels of coveted endorsements, including from New Hampshire's most popular Republican Gov. Chris Sununu. The latter's backing of the former South Carolina governor was essentially focused on the idea that Haley becomes the "clear alternative" to Trump, said Saint Anselm College's New Hampshire Institute of Politics Director Neil Levesque.
It was also found that Haley received strong support among "somewhat conservative" and "moderate" Republican primary voters. This comes in a state where independents play a major role in determining candidates' fates.
Haley, the former ambassador to the United Nations, does not necessarily have to beat Trump in the New Hampshire primary to make progress. Some experts say she needs to get close enough to alter the narrative that the former president is the runaway president in the Republican race ahead of other GOP primary contests.
New Hampshire Poll
The director of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center, Andrew Smith, said that if Trump does not get over 50%, it would show that he has serious competition in the party. According to the Hindustan Times, Haley already has 29% of Trump's 33%.
In response to Haley's sudden rise, Trump reacted by insulting her on his Truth Social media platform, calling her a "Birdbrain" and saying that he considers the polls "fake." He also spoke on a radio show where he said he is not worried about Haley as a challenger in the Republican primary.
However, he has also reportedly asked his team about choosing Haley as his running mate if he does win the nomination. This suggests that he wants to benefit from the former South Carolina governor's popularity among the people.
Haley's strong poll results have drawn mixed reactions from Trump as he continues to contend with more than 90 criminal charges as he seeks a second presidency. For now, the former ambassador to the United Nations is touting her poll performances as she continues to seek further support to win the Republican primary, said The Guardian.
