It’s going to be a very Merry Christmas for South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and her family, as the Republican governor had the opportunity to welcome her husband, Michael, home from Afghanistan Thursday after an 11-month deployment.
Post by Nikki Haley.
Michael, who is an officer in the South Carolina Army National Guard, acknowledged how excited he was to be returning to the Palmetto State earlier in the day.
Post by Michael Haley.
The state’s first gentleman works as a military technician and oversees several of his wife’s initiatives, including the Lace House Commission, actively participating with Youth Challenge and other at-risk youth programs in the state, and advocating for the state’s foster care and adoption services. He and the governor have two children, 15-year-old Rena and 12-year-old Nalin.
The first-term governor is likely to be challenged by her 2010 Democratic opponent, State Sen. Victor Sheheen, in 2014. The Cook Political Report ranks the race as “Likely Republican,” and an October 2013 poll conducted by Republican polling firm Harper Polling found Haley with an eight-point lead over Sheheen.
