Republican Party's Nikki Haley on Tuesday announced her candidacy for the 2024 presidential election.
Haley has become the first challenger to former President Donald Trump who announced his presidential election campaign last year.
In the US presidential election, the candidates have to first secure nominations within their parties and then they face off the rival candidate in the final presidential election. Haley will therefore now compete with Trump for Republican Party's nomination. She announced her presidential bid in a video shared on social media.
Haley, 51, is the first in the long line of Republicans who are expected to launch 2024 campaigns in the coming months. Other expected candidates included Florida Governor Ron deSentis and former Vice President Mike Pence.
Haley is the former Governor of South Carolina Governor. She served as the US Ambassador at the United Nations Ambassador under the Trump administration. Her presidential candidacy marks an about-face for the ex-Trump Cabinet official, who said two years ago that she wouldn't challenge her former boss for the White House in 2024.
Haley's original name was Nimrata Nikki Randhawa. She was born to Indian immigrants. She first won political office in 2004.
The Britannica Encyclopaedia notes, "In 2004 Nikki won a seat in the state House of Representatives, campaigning on a traditional Republican platform that included tax cuts, immigration controls, and abortion restrictions. She took office the following year and was reelected in 2008. In 2010 Haley ran for governor of South Carolina, earning the backing of the Tea Party movement, notably Sarah Palin."
Upon her election as the Governor of South America, Haley made history as the the first woman and the first person of an ethnic minority to hold the governorship, notes Britannica.
Though he has not yet made a formal announcement, President Joe Biden has dropped hints that he will seek reelection in 2024. While he has no opponent yet in the Democratic Party, he is plagued by low approval ratings. Biden's approval rating currently is just 42.8 per cent, according to election and polling news site FiveThirtyEight.
The position of Trump as the Republican candidate for 2024 election has weaked after he led the party to poor performance in 2022 mid-term elections. There have been calls by American conservatives that Trump should not emerge as the party candidate in 2024.
(With AP inputs)
