Indian-American politician Nikki Haley launched her presidential campaign on Tuesday, becoming the first Republican to challenge former US President Donald Trump in his 2024 bid for the White House.

“I’m Nikki Haley, and I’m running for president,” she announced in a video message.

Further, she said, “It’s time for a new generation of leadership — to rediscover fiscal responsibility, secure our border, and strengthen our country, our pride, and our purpose. Some people look at America and see vulnerability. The socialist left sees an opportunity to rewrite history”.

Haley’s 3-minute 30 seconds video starts with her voiceover, describing the racial divide in the city she was born in. Haley is the second woman of color to ever seek the Republican Party’s nomination for the White House. The first was Angel Joy Chavis Rocker, a school counselor from Florida, who entered the 2000 presidential race, becoming the first African-American to do so.

Born Nimrata Nikki Randhawa to immigrant Punjabi Sikh parents, Haley is the third Indian-American to run for the US presidency in three consecutive election cycles.

“I have seen evil. In China, they commit genocide. In Iran, they murder their own people for challenging the government. And when a woman tells you about watching soldiers throw her baby into a fire, it puts things in perspective,” she said in the video.

Proud Indian immigrant

Identifying herself as the proud daughter of Indian immigrants, ”We turned away from fear toward God and the values that still make our country the freest and greatest in the world. We must turn in that direction again,” she added. She talks about growing up in Bamberg, South Carolina, and how it shaped her belief in a strong and proud America.

Nikki Haley, 51, is the two-term governor of South Carolina and the former US ambassador to the United Nations. Her formal declaration means she will be the first contender to join the contest against her former 76-year-old boss Trump, who announced his third bid for the White House late last year.

Casting herself as a younger, fresher alternative to Trump, Haley had been hinting at a White House bid for weeks.”Republicans have lost the popular vote in seven out of the last eight presidential elections that have to change. Joe Biden’s record is abysmal, but that shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Washington establishment has failed us over and over and over again. It’s time for a new generation of leadership to rediscover fiscal responsibility, secure our border, and strengthen our country, our pride, and our purpose,” Haley said.

Before entering the presidential ballot, Haley has to win the Republican Party’s presidential primary which will start in January next year. The next US presidential election is scheduled to be held on November 5, 2024.

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