WASHINGTON — Former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, a sharp critic of Donald Trump during the Republican primaries this year, said on Wednesday that she will vote for the former president and presumptive GOP nominee.
The former U.N. ambassador made the comment during an event at the Hudson Institute in Washington, according to CNN and The Associated Press.
It was Haley’s first public appearance since she ended her bid for the presidency on March 6, The New York Times reported. At the event, Haley delivered a blistering critique of President Joe Biden’s foreign policy, according to the newspaper.
Haley, 52, said Trump “has not been perfect” on policies important to her, but added that Biden has “been a catastrophe,” CNN reported.
She was answering a question about whom she would prefer on foreign policy -- Trump or Biden, The Washington Post reported.
“I will be voting for Trump,” Haley said. “Having said that, I stand by what I said in my suspension speech. Trump would be smart to reach out to the millions of people who voted for me and continue to support me and not assume that they’re just going to be with him.”
Haley won only one primary -- in Vermont -- out of 15 states holding Republican primaries on Super Tuesday, which prompted her to drop out of the race.
She did not endorse Trump when she bowed out of the race.
Haley made history as the first woman to win a Republican presidential primary when she defeated Trump in the District of Columbia, the AP reported. Haley ended her campaign winning 89 GOP delegates.
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