Nikki Haley heads to Iowa to keep up momentum after second GOP debate

Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley will be in Iowa this weekend to continue her momentum after the second GOP debate on Wednesday night, a spokesperson for Haley’s campaign told the Washington Examiner.

Haley will be in Clive, Iowa, on Saturday to meet with voters who are on the fence about where to throw their support. Haley is polling third in Iowa, according to three recent polls, trailing former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL).

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“Nikki is doubling down on her momentum by going directly to the voters just like she has been doing since she announced, and it’s working,” Haley spokesman Ken Farnaso told the Washington Examiner exclusively. “She is second in New Hampshire and second in South Carolina, and we’re coming for Iowa too. She’s in it to win it.”

Haley’s performance in the debates has earned her a surge in polls and criticism from Trump’s campaign, which blasted her for her previous admiration of Hillary Clinton.

Mark J. Terrill/AP

“Hillary Clinton Is an Inspiration to Nikki Haley,” the campaign email read Thursday morning.

The email comes after Haley, who served as Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, called out the former president and his response to China while in office during Wednesday’s debate.

“This is where President Trump went wrong,” Haley said on the debate stage. “He focused on trade with China, he didn’t focus on the fact that they were buying up our farmland, he didn’t focus on the fact that they were killing Americans.”

Farnaso said the attack on Haley was because he felt “threatened” by her as she gained in the polls. Haley is the only candidate who could beat President Joe Biden by a considerable margin in the general election, according to a CNN poll and an NBC News poll after the first debate, noting her popularity among independents.

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An unnamed Democratic strategist noted that Biden’s inner circle also fears Haley, according to Politico.

“If they nominate Nikki Haley, we’re in trouble,” the strategist said.