Nikki Haley Wins Her First Republican Primary in D.C.

(RepublicanReport.org) – Republicans in the nation’s capital cast their ballots for the GOP presidential candidate from Friday, March 1, through Sunday, March 3. Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley received her first primary victory of the 2024 campaign over Donald Trump, securing 62.8% of the vote to the former president’s 33.3% (1,274 votes to 676).

Haley campaign spokesperson Olivia Perez-Cubas and creative director Suzanne Youngblood Lane posted statements on their X/Twitter accounts boasting that her victory made Haley the first woman in US history to win a Republican primary election.

This makes Nikki Haley the first woman to win a Republican primary in U.S. history https://t.co/eT4T4UafLz

— Olivia PC (@olivia_pc) March 4, 2024

Republican strategist Doug Heye posted a statement on his X/Twitter page predicting that the Trump campaign would dismiss his loss by characterizing the District of Columbia as a “swamp swamp swamp.” Axios reported that the former president’s team issued a statement conceding Heye’s point by noting that Haley had been “crowned Queen of the Swamp” by DC insiders and lobbyists.

We know how the Trump campaign will respond to this (“swamp swamp swamp”), but a whole lot of people who worked for Trump – who know him and his administration best – rejected him.

A deep dive can extrapolate the numbers behind this. https://t.co/7t0VkqzD5C

— Doug Heye (@DougHeye) March 4, 2024

Haley posted a statement on her Facebook account pushing back on the Trump campaign’s assertion. “Republicans closest to Washington’s dysfunction know that … Trump has brought nothing but chaos and division,” she wrote.

Trump posted a brief statement about Haley’s primary victory on his TruthSocial page. The former president noted his decision to avoid the DC Vote because of its “Swamp” status. He also pointed out there was no upside to campaigning there since the District only has “very few delegates.”

Trump also pointed to his weekend primary victories in Michigan, Idaho, and Missouri. He pointed out his wins in those states by “big numbers,” characterizing them as the “complete destruction of a very weak opponent.”

Haley’s showing in Washington, DC, is reminiscent of Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) win there in 2016. He picked up 37.3% of the ballots compared to John Kasich’s 35.5% and Trump’s 13.8%. However, unlike Haley, the Florida senator’s victory in the District of Columbia was his third of the campaign cycle. Trump won the District in 2020 when he ran unopposed for a second term.