As Democrats court Haley supporters, the former UN ambassador is still waiting for a response from Trump

CHAPIN, S.C. (AP) – Nikki Haley received more Republican primary votes than anyone running against it Donald Trump for this year Presidential nomination. She has said she will vote for him, and she has released her delegates to support him at the Republican National Convention.

But unlike some of Trump's other main Republican Party rivals, such as Vivek Ramaswamy and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, she did not campaign to support her party's nominee. According to a person familiar with the situation, Haley gave Trump's campaign a list of dates when she would be available to help him, but no appearances were scheduled.

Trump's campaign did not respond to a message from The Associated Press asking why Haley, his former U.N. ambassador and former South Carolina governor, did not campaign with the candidate or how such conversations went. The person who confirmed performance dates were offered spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity to discuss logistics.

There was no love lost between Trump and Haley during the GOP primaries, in which Haley repeatedly appeared questioned his suitability for the position by both Trump and President Joe Biden and called for cognitive testing for older politicians. Haley repeatedly warned that Trump's nomination would put Democrat Kamala Harris in the White House, implying that Biden – still in the race at the time – would not be able to serve another term.

“We're going to have a female president of the United States, and it's either going to be me or it's going to be Kamala Harris,” Haley said during almost every Trump speech or media appearance, saying that “chaos” follows Trump.

Trump's anger only grew when Haley remained in the race and became his last remaining primary rival.

“Anyone who 'contributes' to Birdbrain from this moment forward will be permanently expelled from the MAGA camp,” Trump wrote on Truth Social after a Haley event in South Carolina in late January, using the nickname he used for himself Haley came up with the abbreviation for his slogan “Make America Great Again.”

When Haley ended her 2024 presidential campaign after the Super Tuesday contests, she waited two months to endorse Trump. In June she did released their delegates so they were free to support him at the Republican National Convention. At the meeting in July, to which Haley was invited at the last minute, she said she told her supporters“You don’t have to agree with Trump 100% to vote for him.”

For months, she has said she was “on call” to support Trump. She has her own radio show, Sirius

Although Haley isn't rooting for Trump, she has made it clear that she supports her party's candidate in the general election, even if some of her voters aren't so convinced. Harris' campaign launched “Republicans for Harris” to appeal to GOP voters turned off by Trump's candidacy, with a particular focus on primary voters who supported Haley.

“Kamala Harris and I are polar opposites on every issue,” Haley said in a statement to the AP on Monday. “Any attempt to use my name to further their agenda is misleading and false. I support Donald Trump because he understands that we must make America strong, safe and prosperous.”

According to veteran Republican strategist Terry Sullivan, in a future campaign of his own, Haley could benefit from not campaigning with Trump but supporting him.

“She wants to walk again and wants to have both,” Sullivan said. “The never-Trumpers still like her, but the pro-Trump voters like her for supporting him.”

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Associated Press writer Colleen Long in Washington contributed to this report.

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Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP