BEAUFORT, South Carolina — Supporters of former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley concede she will likely lose the South Carolina GOP primary to former President Donald Trump on Saturday.
But that hasn’t stopped them from voting for her and encouraging several friends, co-workers, and family members to do the same.
On a sunny Wednesday evening in Beaufort, South Carolina, the city where the famed movie Forrest Gump was partially filmed, numerous South Carolinians told the Washington Examiner their dislike of Trump is fueling their support for Haley’s long-shot presidential campaign.
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“Donald Trump is somebody who breaks apart the Constitution, breaks apart the country,” said Greg Schulte, 65, a fervent Haley supporter from Beaufort. “She, I think, can bring it together.”
Schulte wants Haley to continue her campaign through Super Tuesday if she loses South Carolina, citing a famous quip from Forrest Gump. “Remember, ‘Run, Forrest, run’? Run, Nikki, run,” he said.
Beaufort resident Lewis Tabb, 74, doesn’t expect Haley to win on Saturday. “Unfortunately, I think it’ll be Donald Trump,” Tabb said when asked who would win the Palmetto State’s primary.
“My concern is that, as has happened in prior elections, he will drag along a bunch of unelectable coattail riders, and those that are electable are probably not the best candidates to start with,” Tabb continued.
Haley hit on several concerns voters have had about a third election with Trump as the GOP standard-bearer when she spoke adjacent to the picturesque Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park on Wednesday evening.
“I don’t know if you saw what Donald Trump said in Conway over a week ago. He said any NATO country that wasn’t pulling their weight, America wouldn’t stand with that,” Haley said during her stump speech. “But he doubled down and said any country that wasn’t pulling their weight, he would encourage Putin to invade them.”
Multiple attendees interrupted Haley to shout “No!” and boo Trump’s comments.
Haley said she would not drop out of the primary race and would travel to Michigan the day after South Carolina’s primary, much to the delight of supporters. During a “State of the Race” speech on Tuesday, the former two-term governor taunted Trump and Republican leaders backing him by repeatedly saying she would continue running for president.
“They know when the country’s future is on the line, you don’t drop out. You keep fighting,” Haley said of people concerned about the nation. “In fact, you fight harder than ever. That’s why I refuse to quit. South Carolina will vote on Saturday. But on Sunday, I’ll still be running for president. I’m not going anywhere.”
South Carolinians told the Washington Examiner they enjoy her tenacity.
“I like her attitude. She’s just like a thorn in Trump’s side. And I like that,” said Abby Newton, 72, a Beaufort resident and Democrat who is supporting Haley in the GOP primary.
Trump is leading Haley by an average of 25.3 points in South Carolina polls and has garnered 63 delegates to Haley’s 17. To become the presumptive GOP nominee, a candidate needs 1,215 delegates, which Trump’s campaign is predicting it will accomplish, at the earliest, on March 19.
A memo from senior campaign advisers Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles on Monday argued that Trump would win 114 delegates from South Carolina’s primary.
“On Super Tuesday, under this very favorable model for Nikki, President Trump would win 773 Delegates. President Trump would win an additional 162 Delegates the following two weeks, after Super Tuesday,” the pair continued. “And, on March 19, under this most generous model for Nikki, President Trump would win the Republican nomination for President.”
However, the unfavorable delegate math is not deterring Haley’s supporters.
“He’s likely to cinch enough delegates by the middle of March,” conceded Rick Stone, 71, a Saint Helena Island resident who is backing Haley. “But with everything going on with him, she needs to stay in the race because we need an alternative.”
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The former president will likely spend the rest of this year in court battling 91 felony indictments, any of which could derail his presidential campaign if he is convicted. The legal drama surrounding Trump is part of the reason a sizable group of Republicans wants Haley to stay in the race.
“We’ve been in such disarray for so long. I think she really gives us hope,” said Samantha Ely, 36, a Bluffton, South Carolina, resident who brushed off questions about Trump’s lead in the race. “I mean, that’s to be expected. That’s what’s gonna happen based on the numbers, but I don’t think it’s gonna matter. I think that we’re gonna be smart enough as a nation to vote for somebody that’s going to make a real difference.”
