General explainer

Is Nikki Haley running for president in 2028?

Nikki Haley has not announced a 2028 presidential campaign, but as the runner-up for the 2024 Republican nomination she is tracked as a possible candidate. She appears in 8 of the 13 mid-2026 national Republican primary surveys, with support ranging from 2 to 4.6 percent. Vice President JD Vance leads every mid-2026 Republican primary survey.

Updated August 18, 2026

Nikki Haley, the former governor of South Carolina and former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, is a possible 2028 Republican presidential candidate. She was the runner-up for the 2024 Republican nomination - the last major rival standing against Donald Trump in that primary - which keeps her on every serious list of potential 2028 contenders.

Haley has not made a formal announcement, FEC filing, or dated public statement of 2028 intent as of mid-2026. Her tracking as a possible candidate rests on her 2024 runner-up standing and her continued national profile rather than on any specific recent signal.

Haley appears in 8 of the 13 mid-2026 national Republican primary surveys, with support ranging from 2 to 4.6 percent. Complete poll listing, newest to oldest: Quantus Insights (July 3-7, 2026, 480 LV) 3 percent; Big Data Poll (June 26-28, 2026, 1,166 LV) 4 percent; McLaughlin and Associates (June 17-23, 2026, 440 RV) 3 percent; I&I/TIPP (May 26-28, 2026, 561 RV) 2 percent; Big Data Poll (May 24-27, 2026, 1,148 LV) 3.8 percent; Emerson College (May 24-25, 2026, 432 LV) 4.6 percent -- her peak reading; Overton Insights (May 16-20, 2026, 509) 4 percent; Daily Mail/JL Partners (May 15-19, 2026, 496 LV) 3 percent. She was not listed as a named choice in five surveys: Focaldata (June 26-30, 2026), Echelon Insights (June 11-14, 2026), Focaldata (May 29-June 1, 2026), Harvard-Harris (May 29-31, 2026), and Echelon Insights (May 14-18, 2026). Vice President JD Vance leads every mid-2026 Republican primary survey.

South Carolina holds 9 electoral votes and is classified Safe R in 2028 -- the state voted Republican in 2016, 2020, and 2024, per lib/states.ts. Both Haley and Tim Scott, the South Carolina senator and 2024 presidential candidate, are South Carolina residents, per lib/candidates.ts. The 12th Amendment bars electors from casting both a presidential vote and a vice-presidential vote for residents of their own state. A Haley-Scott or Scott-Haley ticket would put South Carolina's 9 Safe R electoral votes at risk unless one of the two changed their legal state of residence before the election. The 2000 election established the controlling precedent: Dick Cheney changed his voter registration from Texas to Wyoming before joining the George W. Bush ticket. No other major tracked 2028 Republican candidate is a South Carolina resident -- Vance is an Ohio resident, Rubio, DeSantis, and Trump Jr. are Florida residents, Cruz is a Texas resident, Cotton and Huckabee Sanders are Arkansas residents, Kemp is a Georgia resident, Hawley is a Missouri resident, Youngkin is a Virginia resident, and Noem is a South Dakota resident -- so a Haley pairing with any candidate other than Scott creates no same-state constraint.

Haley is constitutionally eligible. She is a natural-born U.S. citizen, is 54 years old as of mid-2026 - well above the constitutional minimum of 35 - and meets the 14-year U.S. residency requirement. Her 2024 campaign built a national donor and volunteer network that could be reactivated for 2028; whether she chooses to run against a field led by a sitting vice president is the open question.

Related questions

Has Nikki Haley said she is running for president in 2028?

No. She has made no announcement, FEC filing, or dated public statement of 2028 intent as of mid-2026. She is tracked as a possible candidate because she was the 2024 Republican runner-up and retains a national profile.

Did Nikki Haley run for president before?

Yes. Haley ran in the 2024 Republican primary and was the last major rival standing against Donald Trump, making her the runner-up for the nomination.

Is Nikki Haley eligible to run for president in 2028?

Yes. She is a natural-born U.S. citizen, is 54 years old as of mid-2026, and meets all three constitutional requirements: natural-born citizenship, age 35 or older, and 14 years of U.S. residency.

Where does Nikki Haley stand in 2028 Republican polls?

She appears in 8 of the 13 mid-2026 national Republican primary surveys, with support ranging from 2 to 4.6 percent. Her peak reading is 4.6 percent in Emerson College (May 24-25, 2026, 432 LV). She was not listed as a named choice in five surveys: Focaldata (June 26-30), Echelon Insights (June 11-14), Focaldata (May 29-June 1), Harvard-Harris (May 29-31), and Echelon Insights (May 14-18). JD Vance leads every mid-2026 GOP survey.

Does Haley's South Carolina residency create a 12th Amendment ticket constraint?

Yes, if her running mate is also from South Carolina. Tim Scott, the South Carolina senator and 2024 presidential candidate, is also a South Carolina resident. A Haley-Scott or Scott-Haley ticket would put South Carolina's 9 Safe R electoral votes at risk under the 12th Amendment's same-state rule. The standard remedy is for one candidate to change their legal state of residence before the election, following Dick Cheney's 2000 precedent. A Haley pairing with any candidate other than Scott creates no same-state constraint, as no other major tracked 2028 Republican is a South Carolina resident.

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Related explainers

Who can run for president of the United States?

To be eligible, a person must be a natural-born U.S. citizen, at least 35 years old, and have lived in the U.S. for at least 14 years.

When do 2028 presidential campaigns start?

The 2028 presidential campaign effectively starts after the November 2026 midterms, with formal announcements expected through 2027 - historically 12 to 18 months before the first primaries in early 2028. There is no legal start date, and as of July 2026 no major candidate has formally declared.

Is Ted Cruz running for president in 2028?

Ted Cruz has said he expects to run for president again 'at some point' and has been reported to be weighing a 2028 campaign. The Texas senator and 2016 Republican runner-up is tracked as a possible candidate. He appears in 11 of the 13 mid-2026 GOP primary surveys -- absent from Harvard-Harris (May 29-31) and Overton Insights (May 16-20) -- with support ranging from 0.7 to 5 percent. Vice President JD Vance leads all 13 surveys.

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