Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley suggested Friday that she may accept the help of Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to defeat the GOP frontrunner, former President Donald Trump, in the 2024 presidential primary.
Haley said she would “maybe” consider DeSantis as her vice president, according to an interview with NBC News and the Des Moines Register.
“I am going to defeat Donald Trump on my own,” Haley said. “If he wants to join forces with me, I welcome that. But right now, we’ve got a race that we feel good about. We’ve got a surge. We’ve got momentum.”
DeSantis said he is unwilling to join forces with Haley, according to his own interview with both outlets, calling the former U.N. ambassador a “phony” and the “darling of the Never Trumpers,” NBC reported. DeSantis accused Haley of running to be Trump’s vice president, which he said he would not do. Haley refused to directly answer whether she would be Trump’s running mate. (RELATED: Christie Says Nikki Haley Would ‘Eat Glass’ To Be Trump’s VP)
“The reason I don’t answer that question is I don’t play my opponents games,” Haley told the outlets “I am not running to be vice president.”
Haley recently faced backlash for saying at a New Hampshire campaign event Wednesday that the Granite State’s voters will “get it right” and that they will “correct” the results of the upcoming Iowa caucuses. Haley currently polls at 24.8% in New Hampshire and 16.1% in Iowa, trailing Trump, who is leading in both states at 46.3% and 51.3%, respectively, according to RealClearPolitics.