Nikki Haley wins 17% of vote in Pennsylvania GOP primary. Is it warning sign for Trump?

Nikki Haley garnered 17% of the vote in Pennsylvania’s Republican primary despite having dropped out over a month ago.

Her double-digit performance in the swing state is seen by some as a potential warning sign for former President Donald Trump — the party’s presumptive nominee — who won 83% of the vote in the April 23 primary.

“This is a huge red flag for the Trump campaign in a battleground state,” Republicans Against Trump, an anti-Trump political initiative, wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “Many Republicans will never vote for Donald Trump.”

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“She has 155,000 votes with 98% reported — nearly 2X the margin Trump lost the state by in 2020,” Kaivan Shroff, a Democratic commentator, wrote in a post on X. “Good news for Biden.”

Haley performed particularly well in some counties surrounding Philadelphia in the closed primary, garnering nearly 25% in Montgomery, Delaware and Chester counties.

“Trump is hemorrhaging votes in the Philadelphia suburbs,” Matthew McDermott, a Democratic strategist, wrote in a post on X, adding “Major red flags for Republicans.”

However, her post-candidacy votes are not seen as a harbinger for Trump by everyone.

Her 17% margin does “not necessarily” indicate Trump is a weak candidate, Michael Barone, a political analyst for the Washington Examiner and resident fellow emeritus at the American Enterprise Institute, a right-leaning think tank, wrote in a post on X.

“Party registration is a lagging indicator, and in a state like PA where most people have stayed put a long time, the body of registered Republicans will include many people — especially affluent college grads — who regularly vote Democratic in November,” Barone wrote.

Haley has lost every Republican primary thus far, with the exception of Washington, D.C.

However, she picked up a significant minority of the vote in many states, including 33% in Colorado and 27% in Michigan.

Haley dropped out of the race on March 6. And after weeks of ramping up her attacks on Trump, she ultimately endorsed him in her farewell speech, saying “It is now up to Donald Trump to earn the votes of those in our party and beyond who did not support him ... And I hope he does that,” according to Politico.

Pennsylvania’s Republican primary also occurred on the same day as the state’s Democratic nominating contest, which resulted in a landslide victory for President Joe Biden.

He won 93% of the vote, while longshot challenger Rep. Dean Phillips garnered 7% — 10 points fewer than Haley.

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