Two months after dropping out of the GOP race for president, Nikki Haley’s continued strength in the primaries could be a warning sign for both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in their runs for the White House.
Haley garnered more than 20% of voters’ support — 128,000 votes in all — in Indiana’s primary on Tuesday.
CNN Republican commentator Alice Stewart says the former South Carolina governor and onetime U.N. ambassador “did a good job of communicating a younger generation of fresh, positive, forward-thinking leadership.”
Stewart told the hosts of “Politically Georgia” on Wednesday that Haley communicated well on abortion during her candidacy.
“(Haley) really did manage to navigate the abortion issue in a way that is more receptive to independent voters and saying, ‘Let’s not demonize this issue,’ ” Stewart said.
Democratic National Committee member Wendy Davis interpreted the Indiana primary differently. She said Biden has a chance to win some of those Haley voters.
“I think it’s the same kind of voters you saw that helped us win in 2020 and helped us elect two Democratic senators,” Davis said.
Both women also commented on the op-ed former Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan wrote for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution urging Republicans to vote for Biden.
“(Duncan) refreshed our memories,” Davis said. “He had a very accurate assessment of how Donald Trump performed as president at one of the most difficult times in our nation during the pandemic and he performed horribly.”
“The reality is Republicans want to see someone besides President Biden be reelected,” Stewart said. “And if that means getting behind President Trump, that’s what they will do.”
Thursday on “Politically Georgia”: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Mark Niesse joins us to talk about the latest package of election bills Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law.
