Donald Trump is set to become the Republican Party's presidential nominee, after his last rival, Nikki Haley, withdrew from the race.
A source familiar with Ms. Haley's plans confirmed to NBC News, Sky News' US partner, that she will exit the race today – and will not offer an endorsement.
Instead, it is understandable that they will be encouraged Mr. Trump To gain the support of Republicans and independent voters who supported her.
That means Trump is heading toward what will almost certainly be a showdown in November with the man who defeated him in the 2020 election: the Democrat. Joe Biden.
Haley, the 52-year-old former governor of South Carolina, has presented herself as a staunch conservative and a younger alternative to Trump, who is 77 years old.
Donald Trump at an election night party on Super Tuesday. Photo: AP
She was also seen as the choice of Republicans who were tired of her Trump's ongoing legal issues – He faces four criminal cases, including allegations regarding efforts to reverse the outcome of the 2020 election and his handling of national security documents.
But Haley failed to reach Republican voters, losing nearly all of her contests for the GOP nomination and taking only one of the Super Tuesday primaries.
Trump and Biden both won the states of California, Texas, Alabama, Colorado, Maine, Oklahoma, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Minnesota, and Massachusetts.
Biden also won the Democratic primaries in the states of Utah, Vermont, and Iowa. The only contest the 81-year-old Trump lost on Tuesday was the Democratic caucus in American Samoa, a small US territory in the South Pacific.
Read more: We are on our way to the oldest presidential race in US history, and one that most people don't want
Joe Biden campaigning in Michigan in February. Photo: AP
Haley's only win that night came in Vermont, denying Trump an outright victory.
But the former president won other perhaps favorable states such as Virginia, Massachusetts and Maine – which have large numbers of moderate voters like those who supported her in previous primaries – and forced his last remaining rivals to withdraw from the race.
Haley was ambassador to the United Nations for nearly two years during Trump's presidency, and when she resigned, Trump described her as a “very special” person.
But in recent months during the election campaign, he has changed his tune.
He used her background as the daughter of Indian immigrants as ammunition for racist attacks, and amplified false claims about her eligibility for the White House, even though she was born in South Carolina.
She pushed back, calling him “troubled,” saying he was too chaotic and divisive to be an effective president, and criticizing his admiration for dictators such as Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Read more from Sky News:
Haley became the first woman to win a Republican primary
How is Trump's grip on the Republican Party tightening?
Her departure — after enduring a long string of losses, including in her home state — allows Trump to focus solely on a potential November rematch with Biden.
They and their policies will dominate the next eight months, after having dominated the past eight years.
However, it is a rematch that few Americans want.
Polls show that both Biden and Trump have low approval ratings among voters.
