Nikki Haley is a Former United States Ambassador to the United Nations someone who broke the party’s white, male mold and could walk fine political lines, rejecting some right-wing extremes without alienating too many.
From the moment she was elected governor in 2010, Haley's image as a woman in overwhelmingly male-dominated party, as the daughter of Indian immigrants, gained significant attention.
The first female and first person of color to take control of South Carolina was her. The youngest governor of any state at 38 and also the first Indian American to be in a presidential Cabinet.
The Governorship-Haley, 51, was initially elected governor by a narrow margin then tripled that margin when she was re-elected in 2014.
In her first year in office, Haley signed a bill cracking down on illegal immigration. In 2014, she signed a bill that redistributed education funding to districts with the highest poverty levels and provided money for reading coaches in schools.
The Confederate Flag-In 2015, three weeks after a white man killed nine Black parishioners at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, Haley signed a bill to remove the Confederate battle flag.
The U.N. Ambassadorship-After President Donald Trump chose her as his ambassador to the UN, Haley was confirmed overwhelmingly by the Senate, 96-4.
Haley denounced Trump during the 2016 Republican primary race, describing him as “everything I taught my children not to do in kindergarten.
At the United Nations, Haley was a face of the Trump administration’s policies on Israel, North Korea, Russia and Syria.
Haley tweeted a video announcing her candidature and said, “You should know this about me.
I don’t put up with bullies. And when you kick back, it hurts them more if you’re wearing heels,” Haley said. “I’m Nikki Haley and I’m running for president.