Nikki Haley is the last bulwark against Trump’s takeover of the Republican Party. How long will she last?

Nikki Haley is the last Republican candidate standing between Donald Trump and the 2024 Republicanpresidential nomination.

When she announced her run on 14 February 2023, she became the first woman of colour to be a major candidate for the Republican nomination and thefirst woman governor to run for the top job.

As the last bulwark of the old pre-2016 Republican establishment standing in Mr Trump’s way, the former UN ambassador and South Carolina governor has vowed to remain in the race until at least the primary in her home state on 24 February, but polling has her around 30 points behind Mr Trump there.

Top state officials, such as current governor Henry McMcMaster and senator Tim Scott, who Ms Haley appointed to the Senate and who previously dropped out of the presidential race, are backing Mr Trump in what some see as a cynical attempt to elevate themselves for jobs in a possible second Trump administration in January 2025.

Proving herself to be a nimble debater, Ms Haley grew from 4 per cent on the day she launched her campaign to 12.2 per cent as of 24 January in FiveThirtyEight’s national GOP primary polling average. During that same time, Mr Trump went from 43.8 to 68.5 per cent.

She has steadily grown in strength through high-profile clashes, particularly through her sparring with anti-woke author and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and Florida governor Ron DeSantis, both of whom endorsed Mr Trump after dropping out.

Even as Mr DeSantis campaigned hard in Iowa, Ms Haley came within just two points of him in the state. His departure from the race handed Ms Haley the two-person contest she always coveted, and in New Hampshire on Tuesday night, she hung on to Mr Trump, ending up just over 11 per cent