[ad_1]
cnn
—
Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley won the Republican presidential election. primary in Washington, DC, after three days of voting at the party’s only polling place in the capital: a hotel in the city center.
Haley’s victory, her first in the primary, comes on the eve of what is expected to be a decisive week in the GOP primaries, as she attempts a last stand as the race goes national. Former President Donald Trump has dominated every other early nominating contest and is poised to amass more delegates on Super Tuesday.
“It is not surprising that Republicans closest to Washington’s dysfunction reject Donald Trump and all his chaos,” Haley spokeswoman Olivia Pérez-Cubas said in a statement touting the former governor as the first woman to win a primary. Republican presidential
Haley’s win, although it was her first, wasn’t a huge surprise. Many in Washington believed the District represented their best, and perhaps only, chance to win a primary. Trump’s control over the capital’s Republican Party, which has about 22,000 registered voters, has never fully reflected his dominance nationwide. Trump won the primary in 2020, unopposed, but finished third in the 2016 cycle. Haley held an event Friday with local Republican leaders, a clear sign of optimism.
The Trump campaign, in a statement, sought to turn Haley’s victory into a defeat.
“Tonight’s results in Washington DC reaffirm the goal of President Trump’s campaign: he will drain the swamp and put America first,” said Trump’s press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “The swamp has claimed its queen.”
Republicans will mostly forget about Washington now, at least in the next general election. Biden won it in 2020 with more than 92% of the vote. The District has never supported a Republican presidential candidate. The Republican Party’s high point came in 1972, when Richard Nixon won just over 21% during a landslide re-election.
This story has been updated with additional reactions.
[ad_2]
Source link