Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s exit from the Republican presidential primary on Wednesday marked the start of a historic rematch between former President Donald Trump and President Biden.
Ms. Haley hastened Mr. Trump’s path to a third Republican presidential nomination less than a day after she suffered a crushing defeat in the Super Tuesday primaries.
Her decision to quit locks the current and former president in an epic battle for the White House that will steer the nation’s direction on the economy, foreign policy, energy, border security and other critical issues.
Shortly after Ms. Haley quit the race, one of Mr. Biden’s Democratic opponents, Rep. Dean Phillips, dropped his longshot bid and endorsed the president after failing to win a single delegate. Democrat Marianne Williamson remains in the race but is not considered a threat to his path to the nomination.
Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump have eight months to battle each other for general election voters. Both will have to work to unite voters in their parties while also vying for the nation’s growing faction of independents.
Ms. Haley, who campaigned as a next-generation conservative for voters seeking an alternative to a Trump-Biden rematch, did not endorse the former president in her exit speech.
After criticizing him for months on the campaign trail as a chaotic candidate who alienated Republican and independent voters, she called on Mr. Trump to “earn the votes of those in our party and beyond it who did not support him” and said, “Our conservative cause badly needs more people.”
Ms. Haley won 43% of the vote in her second-place finish in the New Hampshire Primary and racked up double-digit support in South Carolina, her home state, where she also lost to Mr. Trump. She won the District of Columbia and Vermont contests, becoming the first Republican woman to win a presidential primary. Exit polls showed many of those who voted for Ms. Haley will not back Mr. Trump on the ballot in November.
Mr. Trump, 77, thumped his chest Wednesday over his Super Tuesday win, telling supporters on social media that Ms. Haley was “TROUNCED in record-setting fashion.” His campaign team called the primary “a hard-fought race” and urged the party to “unite and defeat Joe Biden.”
Mr. Trump’s national press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said the former president is “tenacious and focused on fixing the crises created by Joe Biden’s policies.”
Mr. Biden, 81, who is destined to be re-nominated by his party despite doubts about his age and ability to serve another term, on Wednesday sought to exploit the enduring internal party division over Mr. Trump. He said in a statement following Ms. Haley’s announcement that “there is a place” for Haley voters in his campaign.
Mr. Biden’s own Super Tuesday results showed warning signs for his general election bid.
In several states, a sizable number of voters refused to vote for Mr. Biden and picked either a longshot Democrat, “no preference” or “uncommitted.”
In Minnesota, nearly 20% of Democratic primary voters chose “uncommitted,” reflecting anger from the base over his support of Israel’s war with the terrorist organization Hamas. In North Carolina, 13% of voters in the Democratic primary chose “no preference,” while 8% percent of Democratic voters in Virginia picked Ms. Williamson.
Mr. Biden became the first sitting president in 44 years to lose a primary Tuesday when entrepreneur and investor Jason Palmer beat him in American Samoa, a territory with a history of picking longshots.
Weeks of polling has shown Mr. Biden with a sinking approval rating on key voter issues, particularly the chaotic southern border that has been overrun with illegal immigrants, mostly due to policies the Biden administration has refused to reverse.
Poll numbers also show Mr. Trump with a consistent lead that, if it holds through the election, would put him back in the White House.
In 2020, the presidential election was decided on Mr. Biden’s narrow wins in a half-dozen swing states: Arizona, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, Wisconsin and Nevada.
Polls currently show Mr. Trump leading in all of those states and his campaign team said he’ll work to put Democratic-leaning states in play for the GOP, although they have not indicated where. At least one poll found 10% of 2020 Biden voters flipping their support to Mr. Trump.
Mr. Biden did not address supporters Tuesday night after his Super Tuesday victory. Earlier in the day, he froze up for about 15 seconds while reporters shouted questions at him after a photo-op.
Mr. Biden’s White House team won’t pledge that the president will meet Mr. Trump on stage for a presidential debate, which has been an uninterrupted tradition since 1948.
Mr. Trump posted on social media he’s ready to rumble with Mr. Biden, even if the Democratic National Committee runs the debates.
“It is important, for the Good of our Country, that Joe Biden and I Debate Issues that are so vital to America, and the American People,” Trump posted Wednesday on Truth Social. “Therefore, I am calling for Debates, ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, ANYPLACE!”
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.