The race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination is down to two major candidates with just one day to go until New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation GOP primary.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who was once seen as Donald Trump’s biggest obstacle in the GOP primary, dropped his bid Sunday and backed the former president over former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley.
On Monday, Haley has scheduled events in Franklin and Salem, while Trump has an evening rally in Laconia. He will spend the first half of the day in court in New York, where he could potentially testify in his defamation trial for calling sexual assault accuser E. Jean Carroll a liar.
What to know
Can Trump be stopped? Key questions after DeSantis drops out of race
Haley tries to draw independents without alienating Trump backers
What to expect in the New Hampshire primary
Who’s running for president? Here are the major 2024 candidates
DeSantis drops out two days before New Hampshire’s primary
The GOP race isn’t over, but the veepstakes have already started
With Trump closing in on the GOP nomination, the effective audition to become his vice president is underway.
His decisive win in last week’s Iowa caucuses and DeSantis’ departure from the race on Sunday has only heightened what had already been a widespread sense of inevitability.
That has given visits this past week by New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, as well as South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and Ohio Sen. JD Vance, the feel of tryouts for the role reminiscent of Trump’s days as a reality TV host.
Others who have appeared in Iowa and New Hampshire on Trump’s behalf include South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia. Lake was at a rally Sunday night taking pictures with supporters and holding a baby in the crowd.
Former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy appeared with Trump on stage in New Hampshire a day after dropping out of the race, also drawing “VP” chants from the crowd as he delivered a fiery speech.
The Associated Press
