Nikki Haley suspends presidential campaign - but stops short of endorsing Trump

Former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley announced today that she is quitting the presidential race – clearing the way for Donald Trump to clinch the Republican nomination and setting American voters up for a Biden-Trump 2020 rematch.

As she delivered a speech on Wednesday morning from her home state of South Carolina, she announced she was suspending her campaign — adding she has “no regrets” about her campaign’s trajectory, which spanned just over a year — but did not endorse Mr Trump.

She mentioned her Republican rival and his expectant ascension to becoming the party’s nominee: “I congratulate him and wish him well. I wish anyone well who would be america’s president. Our country is too precious to let our differences divide us.”

The former UN ambassador also emphasised her political positions. She said it’s a “moral imperative” that the United States stand by its allies in Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, predicted that the “national debt will eventually crush our economy,” and demanded term limits for members of Congress.

The announcement comes after a series of losses and a particularly disappointing day on Super Tuesday, when Ms Haley managed to secure just one win over her Republican rival in Vermont.

Over the course of the primary cycle, Ms Haley emerged from a once-crowded GOP field to become the last person standing against the front-runner.

She consistently rose in the polls after stellar debate performances and received a lot of attention in the fall from wealthy donors and never-Trump Republicans, hoping that an alternative Republican candidate could become the 2024 nominee.

She also earned endorsements from New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu, former 2024 candidate Asa Hutchinson, as well as the Koch