Can she win? Nikki Haley trails Donald Trump by just FOUR POINTS in latest New Hampshire poll as former UN ambassador makes hard charge for Republican nomination
- Nikki Haley continues to make big progress in New Hampshire, now at 29 points, compared to Donald Trump's 33, a new poll shows
- The Jan. 23 vote β a week after the Iowa caucus β is seen as the most public of the early contests
- Boosted by the support of popular four-term Governor Chris Sununu, Haley announced 50 new endorsements across the state on Monday
Nikki Haley trails Donald Trump by just four points in the latest poll of New Hampshire voters, setting the stage for a dramatic showdown on January 23.
Haley, the former South Carolina governor and Trump's U.N. ambassador, was chosen by 29 percent of likely Republican voters in the American Research Group poll.
Trump received 33 percent of the support.
The pollsters spoke to 361 Republicans and 239 unreported voters between December 14 and 20.
Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey, came in third with 13 percent of support, beating Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who was chosen by just six percent of those polled.
Nikki Haley is seen in the Oval Office with Donald Trump in October 2018, when she resigned as his UN ambassador. She was praised for managing to keep Trump and his supporters on side but unaffected by the proximity
DeSantis is still the second-ranked candidate to Trump nationally, but his candidacy has disappointed many who expected him to easily defeat Trump.
Vivek Ramaswamy, the entrepreneur and political newcomer who burned brightly but has succumbed to intense scrutiny, came fifth with just 5 percent of support.
The poll matches Haley's steady rise since early fall, helped by a strong performance in the primary debates and some major endorsements.
Her campaign was pleased to receive the support of four-time New Hampshire Governor, the widely beloved Chris Sununu.
And on Monday, Haley's team revealed another 50 names of local politicians and businesspeople who support her.
βGranite Staters are ready for a new generation of conservative leadership,β said Haley spokesperson Olivia Perez-Cubas.
βAs Nikki continues to rise, it is clear that this is a two-person race between Nikki and Donald Trump and we look forward to debating him one-on-one.β
Trump has yet to participate in any of the debates, and it is not clear that he will.
Trump is seen at a rally in Waterloo, Iowa, on December 19
Haley is pictured Thursday at a rally in Anamosa, Iowa, ahead of the first vote in the Jan. 15 election.
Chris Christie, Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis and Vivek Ramaswamy pictured on December 6 during the Alabama debate
Christie is facing calls to resign and allow his supporters to support Haley, but he shows no signs of wanting to do so.
Sununu said Christie had to “pave the way” for Haley and said she was the best-placed candidate to beat Trump.
βI support Nikki Haley,β Sununu said when asked whether the former New Jersey governor should drop out.
βI think they all need to come clean, including former President Trump. I think everyone needs to clear the way.β
But Christie insisted his candidacy was still strong.
βI'm not going anywhere, so let's be very clear about that,β he said.
He added that it was not Sununu's job “to tell anyone when to get out.”