Nikki Haley was outvoted in Nevada’s Republican presidential major by a “None of These Candidates” possibility on the poll on Tuesday, based on The Associated Press, a humiliation in a contest wherein she confronted no direct competitors.
The major, which awards no delegates, had appeared like a foregone conclusion, as former President Donald J. Trump selected not to participate. On Thursday, he’ll as an alternative take part in party-run caucuses the place all the state’s 26 delegates will likely be awarded, a alternative by Nevada Republicans that sophisticated the method and rendered the first mainly irrelevant.
Ms. Haley skipped campaigning in Nevada solely, selecting as an alternative to spend her time in South Carolina, her residence state and the place the following major will happen, after Mr. Trump simply received the primary two nominating contests in Iowa and New Hampshire. Ms. Haley is predicted to carry a rally in California, a Super Tuesday state, on Wednesday.
Supporters of Mr. Trump in Nevada, together with Gov. Joe Lombardo, had advocated choosing “None of These Candidates” on the first poll as a protest vote towards Ms. Haley. Republicans can then vote for Mr. Trump within the caucuses two days later, the place he’s basically working unopposed after Ms. Haley, his final main rival standing, selected to not compete.
The truth {that a} “none of the above” possibility may overpower any enthusiasm from the supporters of Ms. Haley, the previous governor of South Carolina, is one other blow to her slim probabilities of profitable the nomination over Mr. Trump, who maintains a commanding lead in polls. It additionally blunts any effort of hers to show momentum or rating a minimum of a symbolic victory.
Critics of the twin primary-caucus system in Nevada, together with these in Ms. Haley’s camp, have prompt that the state Republican Party set it as much as profit Mr. Trump, which the social gathering has denied. Michael McDonald, the state social gathering chair, was one of many folks indicted within the pretend elector scheme to overturn President Biden’s 2020 election victory.
“We have not spent a dime nor an ounce of energy on Nevada,” Betsy Ankney, Ms. Haley’s marketing campaign supervisor, stated on Tuesday. “We made the decision early on that we were not going to pay $55,000 to a Trump entity to participate in a process that was rigged for Trump.”
The complicated system was criticized by Mr. Lombardo, a Republican, who known as it “unacceptable for the voters” in an interview with a neighborhood information media outlet final yr.
Nevada has historically held caucuses, however handed a legislation in 2021 removing them and switching to a major, with mail-in ballots as an possibility alongside in-person voting. The state’s Republican Party determined to host its personal contest — an in-person caucus — and compelled candidates to choose one race to take part in.
