Trump Poised for Victory in New Hampshire Primary, DeSantis Drops Out of Race
Trump’s Commanding Lead in New Hampshire
Former President Donald Trump appears poised for another significant victory in his bid to claim the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, with polling showing him with a substantial edge in Tuesday’s Republican primary election in the northeastern state of New Hampshire.
A new CNN poll Sunday showed Trump with 50% of the prospective New Hampshire vote, easily topping the 39% figure for Nikki Haley, his one-time ambassador to the United Nations, and 6% for DeSantis. The survey results were in line with recent polling in the state by other news organizations.
Trump won last week’s caucuses in the reliably Republican midwestern farm state of Iowa, collecting more than 50% of the vote, easily doubling the vote for both DeSantis and Haley.
DeSantis’s Departure Clears the Field
Trump also got a boost, both in New Hampshire and in the race overall, with Sunday’s announcement that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was ending his campaign.
DeSantis failed to meet expectations that he would emerge as a serious challenger to Trump, and his departure from the race leaves Trump and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley as the only two major Republican candidates remaining.
DeSantis’s decision to drop out of the race is a significant setback for those who hoped to see a more moderate alternative to Trump. DeSantis had been seen as a rising star in the Republican Party, and his departure from the race leaves Trump with a clear path to the nomination.
Haley’s Attacks on Trump’s Mental Acuity
Haley’s attacks on Trump’s mental acuity are unlikely to gain much traction with Republican voters. Trump’s supporters are largely unconcerned about his age or his health, and they are more focused on his policies and his ability to win elections.
Haley has claimed that at 77, Trump’s mental acuity is declining, and contended that neither he nor the 81-year-old Biden should lead the country.
In a speech over the weekend, Trump blamed Haley by name four times for the lack of security at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, when 2,000 Trump supporters stormed into the building to try to halt congressional certification of Biden’s victory.
Trump never corrected himself but apparently was referring to another political nemesis, former Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Haley has never served in Congress and says she was in South Carolina at the time of the riot at the Capitol.
The Road Ahead
The upcoming South Carolina primary will be a crucial test for Haley. If she can win her home state, she will have a strong case to make that she is the best candidate to challenge Trump for the Republican nomination. However, if she loses in South Carolina, her campaign is likely to be doomed.
The 2024 Republican presidential primary is shaping up to be a two-person race between Trump and Haley. DeSantis’s departure from the race has cleared the field, and it is now up to Haley to prove that she can be a viable alternative to Trump.
Call to Action
With the New Hampshire primary just days away, the race for the Republican nomination is heating up. Stay tuned for the latest updates and analysis as the candidates make their final pitches to voters.