WASHINGTON D.C. — Oklahoma U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin (R) said Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley (R) should drop out of the Republican nomination for President if she doesn’t win a single state on Tuesday.
Tuesday, March 4, is considered Super Tuesday because 15 states, including Oklahoma, and one territory are all voting for Democratic and Republican nominations for President of the United States.
Mullin, who is personal friends with Trump, said he doesn’t fault Haley for trying, but he believes the results on Tuesday will continue to not be in her favor.
“I don’t think she’s actually being realistic in what she’s trying to get done here,” Mullin said. “She hasn’t won a state yet, and she has a right to run. Nikki has a right to run. Everybody has the right to run. I commend everybody that puts her name on the ballot. However, at some point, you got to call it. I thought she would call it after she lost her own state in a horrible fashion. Now that we go into Super Tuesday, there’s not a chance she’s going to win a single state.”
Haley picked up her first win on Sunday night when she won the Washington D.C. Republican Primary. Trump quickly labeled her “queen of the swamp people” saying she was clearly the establishment’s choice.
Mullin said a poor showing on Super Tuesday will signal to Haley’s donors that they need to start shifting money to U.S. Senate and House races.
“I mean where can their money better be spent because we shouldn’t be fighting among Republicans?” Mullin said. “We should be fighting to take back the White House and the Senate and also strengthen our majority in the House.”
Mullin wrote off the fact that Haley has consistently received sizeable chunks of the vote in all states she’s competed in as people who are “fringe” voters.
Haley said on Monday she has voting number targets in mind that even if she loses a state, she still hopes to hit.
“We have people who are passionate and excited. We have people who want America to be proud again, and so we’re going to do as much as we can, as competitive as we can. We have numbers that we’re hoping for but we’ll see what happens tomorrow,” Haley said.
Haley continues to point to poll numbers in match-ups between her and President Joe Biden where she has better margins of victory than Trump does.
“The American people do not want a rematch between Donald Trump and Joe Biden,” Haley continues to say on the campaign trail.
Haley said on Sunday, that she does not feel bound to a pledge Republican candidates took to support whoever the party makes the eventual nominee, and there are talks about her running on a third party or “no labels” bid if she does not pick up steam in the GOP race.