Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley named the New Hampshire delegates who will represent her in the Republican National Convention should she clinch the state’s primary nomination in two months.
They are an eclectic group that includes a failed U.S. Senate candidate who barbed with New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu during his campaign, a Congressional candidate who lost to a Donald Trump-supported candidate in the midterm primaries, and a temporary House Speaker who was sharply criticized by her own party for lobbying against a parental rights bill.
In a press release, Mrs. Haley’s campaign described them as representing “every corner of New Hampshire” and that “ their hundreds of years of combined grassroots experience will launch Nikki to victory on Jan. 23, 2024.”
Mrs. Haley, who also served as the former governor of South Carolina, has emerged as a consistent second-in-the-lead candidate behind GOP frontrunner former President Donald Trump.
Among the delegates who will represent her at the national convention is former Army Brigadier General Don Bolduc who waged a unsuccessful but close bid as a hard right-winger newcomer against Democratic incumbent Maggie Hassan for her U.S. Senate seat.
In introducing Mrs. Haley at her first of two campaign appearances in New Hampshire on Monday, Mr. Bolduc called the 2024 hopeful a “strong woman that can lead this country.”
He pointed out that in her former role as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Mrs. Haley has experience with representing America’s interests with 190 different nations.
“And she didn’t start any fights that results in our service members having to be deployed somewhere,” Mr. Bolduc said.
The comment seemed a likely response to Mrs. Haley’s rivals and other Republicans who have been labeling her a warmonger for calling on America to stand by Israel and Ukraine.
Also on her list of New Hampshire delegates is George Hansel, who at age 33, became the Mayor of Keene, a college town that sits near the Vermont border.
Mr. Hansel lost to Trump-aligned Robert Burns who was endorsed by the former President in the general elections against Democrat incumbent Annie Kuster. Congresswoman Kuster won.
Mrs. Haley also named former New Hampshire House Speaker Pro Tem Kimberly Rice as one of her chosen delegates. In 2022, Ms. Rice was demoted as chairman of the Committee of Conference and replaced with the majority leader after she worked to defeat a GOP-led parental rights bill.
“It’s such a fine line between parental rights and the child’s rights,” Ms. Rice told the Keene Sentinel in explaining her opposition to the bill.
A ‘Trump Gap’
Ms. Mayville, who is also a practicing nurse and U.S. An Air Force Veteran, told The Epoch Times that Mrs. Haley’s momentum in just the past month proves that she can catch up to President Trump by Jan. 23.She also believes that the “Trump gap” might be skewed, since they only “represent those who were polled” and not the general populace.
“There are those who will never consider anyone else but Trump. But New Hampshire as well as other states have a lot of Independents who still remain undecided or who just finished having their look at the alternatives and are picking Nikki Haley,” she said.
Among those Independents now leaning in Mrs. Haley’s direction are Karen Gormley, who voted for President Joe Biden in the last election.
On Monday morning, she drove down from Grantham, New Hampshire, to see Mrs. Haley at the Oscar Barn in Hooksett. “I’m leaning towards her,” she told The Epoch Times, “because really she seems to be the most sane and organized candidate running.”
Mrs. Gormley, who was wearing a shirt brandishing one of Mrs. Haley’s quips, “Underestimate Me That'll Be Fun,” said she is scrapping President Biden for a potential vote for Mrs. Haley because of the scandal with Hunter Biden. “I think it goes deeper than just being his son,” she said.
Mrs. Gormley also said she is terrified by the prospect that Vice President Kamala Harris could take over as President given what Biden’s age would be during his second term.
Mrs. Haley’s other picks for her New Hampshire delegates include Ken Solinsky, founder of Insight Technology. The Londonderry-based company is the leading producer of U.S. military night vision gear and electro-optical systems.
Melinda Tourangeau, another named delegate, is a U.S. Air Force veteran and founder of Warrior Support Solutions, which specializes in electronic warfare technology.
Outside of new supporters and some of her newly-named delegates, Mrs. Haley was also accompanied by Mr. Sununu, a progressive Republican who appears to be considering endorsing Mrs. Haley although he has also appeared with Mrs. Haley’s fellow rivals Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
Mr. Sununu has made it very clear that he does not support President Trump nor candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, calling Mr. Ramaswamy a “poor choice” for president.
Mr. Ramaswamy, in return, called Mr. Sununu the “face of the establishment” and told reporters an endorsement from him would be the “kiss of death.”
In adding a little color to her appearance at the Oscar Barn, Mrs. Haley was asked if she would consider choosing rival Mr. Christie as her vice president. Mr. Christie is consistently polling in low single digits in election surveys.
The question drew chuckles from the crowd. But Mrs. Haley remained straight-faced, and while she didn’t specifically address the proposal, she did say she hasn’t really considered anyone just yet as her running mate.
