On Tuesday, Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley suffered a humiliating defeat as “none of these candidates” prevailed in the GOP presidential primary in Nevada.
Nikki Haley Loses to ‘None’ in Nevada Primary
Since the option “none of these candidates” was established in Nevada in 1975, Nikki Haley became the only candidate from any party to experience such a setback.
Former President Donald Trump‘s decision to skip the primary has caused the South Carolina Governor to handle the major blow by losing on Tuesday to “none of these candidates.”
The former president’s decision to skip focused on winning the GOP-run caucuses on Thursday night.
After nearly two-thirds of the state’s votes were counted, Haley received roughly 32%, while “none” received approximately 62%.
Although “none of these candidates” garnered more votes, the winner is determined by total votes, per Nevada state law. Nonetheless, Haley is the declared winner.
Though a massive public education push by the media and election organizers was done, many Republican voters continued to be puzzled about why Trump’s name was absent from the primary ballot.
On Tuesday, many Republican voters claimed to have supported the former president by voting for “none of these candidates” after being confused by his absence.
A 64-year-old Republican truck driver, Ron Stanley, who cast his ballot in person in downtown Reno, stated, “I wanted Donald Trump to be on there,”
Initially, Stanley claimed that he believed election organizers were pulling a fast one when he noticed Trump’s name was missing.
Still, he soon realized that the former president had skipped the primary, thus casting his vote to “none.”
Stanley stated, “Nikki Haley is not the answer. Trump’s the guy who has shown, from his business background, that he can make the hard decisions we need.
Small businesses and family farms are just getting pounded by so many restrictions. The answer is not more government.”
This year’s Tuesday’s election was remarkably calm compared to previous years, with no cheering for their favorite candidate outside the polling places and no visible campaign signs.
Haley has also decided to refrain from running a strong campaign in Nevada because she thought the process was highly biased in favor of Trump.
Instead, she focused on campaigning in her native state of South Carolina, which has its primary on February 24.
Olivia Perez-Cubas, Nikki Haley’s campaign spokeswoman, stated, “We didn’t bother to play a game rigged for Trump. We’re full steam ahead in South Carolina and beyond.”
Gary Benedetti, 75, expressed his optimism that Haley will continue in the contest while claiming that he couldn’t bear the thought of another Trump administration. He stated, “We need a change. I’m tired of the drama,”
He added, “If it doesn’t work out with her, I’ll change to Independent. I’m just not going to vote for Trump. There’s too many red flags hanging over his head.”
Manufacturing worker and Republican Michael Holton stated he reluctantly cast his ballot at a polling place in South Reno for “none of these candidates” while expressing his wish for Trump’s participation in the primary.
Holton also accused Haley and claimed she was being disloyal by running against her former employer. Holton stated, “I’m bummed he’s not on the ballot,”
He added, “I feel the caucus will be strong for him, but I’m just bummed he’s not on the ballot.”
Meanwhile, on the other hand, nearly 90% of the Democratic vote went to President Joe Biden, who had no real competition on the ballot. He defeated several rivals, including self-help author Marianne Williamson.
Approximately 6% of Democratic voters selected “none of these candidates.”
In return, Biden thanked Nevada Democrats for their support and called them “the backbone of our nation.”
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