Nikki Haley spent an enormous amount of money on her failed campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, according to Federal Election Commission records.
When combined with donations from the Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity and the pro-Hawley SFA Fund, plus money spent by her official campaign, the effort to push the former South Carolina governor has cost $120 million, the Daily Caller reported. .
However, a spokesperson for the Haley campaign told The Caller that they “believe all the money spent promoting Haley went to good use.”
The 52-year-old finally suspended her campaign earlier this week after a poor performance in the Super Tuesday election in which she won only one state, Vermont.
Over the course of the campaign, it also collected 89 delegates out of 2,429 available, at an average cost of $1.3 million per delegate.
Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullen of Oklahoma told local media on Thursday that Haley should have withdrawn earlier.
“Maybe she should have gotten out when she lost her state,” Mullen said. “I can understand why she stayed there for that reason, but the fact that she stayed there and continued to pursue our Republican nominee to be the next president of the United States, Donald Trump, was a waste of money.”
After announcing that she would finally withdraw from the race, Haley refused to endorse Donald Trump, but left the door open to do so at a later date.
“I am grateful for the outpouring of support we have received from across our great country, but now is the time to suspend my campaign,” Haley said in her campaign suspension letter.
“I said I wanted Americans' voices to be heard — and I did. I have no regrets. And even though I will no longer be a candidate, I will not stop using my voice for the things I believe in.”
Nikki Haley's full speech: “It is now time to suspend my campaign.” https://t.co/kFd1vt3b6Q pic.twitter.com/umthGh62EZ
– NBC News (@NBCNews) March 6, 2024
She added: “It is now up to Donald Trump to win the votes of those who did not support him in our party and outside of it, and I hope he does so.”
However, Haley is not alone in spending a huge sum on an ultimately failed campaign. Ron DeSantis' super PAC, Never Back Down, also spent more than $130 million on his bid for the nomination, and withdrew from the race just days after he finished second in the Iowa caucuses.
