Nikki Haley’s nascent 2024 presidential campaign is picking up support from Republicans once closely identified with former President Donald Trump.
Mrs. Haley is set to be endorsed by retired Army Brig. Gen. Don Bolduc during a swing through New Hampshire on Thursday. Mr. Bolduc was the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in the Granite State in 2022 and is closely associated with Mr. Trump’s populist brand of politics.
“Nikki is exactly who we need leading our country out of the mess we are in,” Mr. Bolduc said.
The endorsement, which was first reported by the New Hampshire Journal, comes one day after Mrs. Haley jumped into the 2024 race. It also comes on the heels of another one-time ally of Mr. Trump, Rep. Ralph Norman, throwing his weight behind the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
“It’s time for a reset and a new chapter in national Republican politics, and there’s no better person to help write that new chapter than our former governor and my good friend, Nikki Haley,” said Mr. Norman, South Carolina Republican.
First elected in 2017, Mr. Norman is one of the most conservative members of the U.S. House of Representatives. As a member of the hardline House Freedom Caucus, he has clashed with establishment Republicans and has backed the impeachment of President Biden.
Most notably, Mr. Norman was one of the key holdouts that initially opposed Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s ascension to the pinnacle of House leadership.
In his endorsement of Mrs. Haley, the lawmaker said it’s time to move past the Trump era.
“We are at a pivotal point in our nation,” Mr. Norman said. “While the Republican candidates, values and messages have done very well here in South Carolina, that hasn’t been the case everywhere across our great nation.”
The endorsements by one-time allies and candidates closely associated with the former president could help offset the image of Mrs. Haley as an establishment or moderate Republican. Despite a conservative record as governor of South Carolina, Mrs. Haley has been mocked as a former President George W. “Bush in heels” by some hardline conservatives.
Not everyone is allayed by the endorsements. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a potential running mate for Mr. Trump, said Mrs. Haley’s record left much to be desired by grassroots conservatives.
• Haris Alic can be reached at halic@washingtontimes.com.
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