Former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley has narrowly won the Republican primary in Vermont, her first victory out of 15 states on Super Tuesday and the only time a Republican woman has prevailed in a state presidential primary.
Haley beat former president Donald Trump in the state, the Associated Press reported, in a close race. It is her second victory in the Republican nomination battle; Haley also captured D.C.’s Republican primary Sunday.
End of carouselNonetheless, Trump is far ahead in the delegate battle and well on his way to securing the GOP nomination, while questions are swirling around whether Haley will continue in the race. She had committed to do so until Super Tuesday.
While Trump is closer to securing the Republican nomination, Haley’s victory in Vermont will bolster her delegate count. The state’s 17 delegates would go to Haley if she reaches 50 percent of the vote — otherwise, they would be split proportionally if she does not meet that threshold, per Vermont GOP party rules.
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The state has far more registered independents and Democrats compared with Republicans, and anyone can choose which primary to cast their ballots in. Turnout was higher in the Republican primary, however. Biden won the Democratic primary with 49,625 votes, with 79 percent of the votes counted.
Haley’s victory was a shock to some who had expected Trump to easily sweep all 15 contests on Super Tuesday.
Less than two weeks before the primary, a University of New Hampshire poll had Trump 30 points ahead of Haley in Vermont, another indication that he would do well in the northern state. But Vermont GOP chair Paul Dame said he was not surprised to see a much narrower margin since he believes Trump has been overperforming in primary polling.
“I was expecting a very close race like this,” he said.
University of Vermont political science professor Alex Garlick said the state has typically supported moderate Republicans, lending an edge to Haley. In addition, anti-Trump sentiment probably drew Democratic and independent voters into the Republican contest.
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Haley campaigned in the state Sunday, holding a rally with Gov. Phil Scott (R), a vocal Trump critic who said Haley provided the best opportunity for Republicans to stop Trump from winning the nomination.
State Rep. Ashley Bartley, who previously worked on the 2016 campaign of Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R), said she felt proud to see Haley performing well in the state, especially in cities. Now, a co-chair of Haley’s state leadership team, Bartley recalled the narrow race against Trump in 2016 where he won by three points and has felt encouraged by the turnout for Haley.
“It’s been so uplifting,” she said.
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