Donald Trump Wins Michigan Republican Primary

Former President Donald Trump has won the 2024 Michigan Republican Primary. Former South Carolina Governor and UN Ambassador Nikki Haley is Trump’s only remaining challenger. With about 11% of expected votes in, Trump leads Haley 64% to 32%. We will provide updates as these numbers change.

This result is not unexpected at all. While in the immediate aftermath of the GOP’s underwhelming 2022 midterms, Ron DeSantis came within 15% of Trump, by May, former President Trump held an over 30 point national lead, and his lead only grew from there.

There was speculation in early 2023 that the GOP might be looking to move on from Trump. DeSantis had won re-election as Florida Governor by 20 points and looked to be the rising star of the party. But an awkward, bumbling campaign, his perceived awkwardness, and Donald Trump’s firm grip on the party, made it clear that no one but Trump would be the nominee.

And while Nikki Haley rose as one of the main non Trump candidates in 2023, she never really threatened to challenge Trump in a serious way for the GOP nomination. She did rise as a more stark contrast to Trump than DeSantis, especially in the realm of foreign policy.

The media’s relentless attacks, and the attempts to remove Trump from the ballot likely increased Republican support for the former President. As while there is much to question Trump on, it has become clear that there is a coordinated attempt to prevent Donald Trump from making it back to the White House.

Many Republicans and conservatives see a ruling class in America that not only despises them, but suppresses their points of view. And while it is arguable that there could be much better representatives of these voters, many of them see the attacks on Trump as attacks on themselves.

What is Nikki Haley gaining from staying in the race? She is not going to win it. And even if Trump were prevented from getting the nomination, Trump’s delegates would go to a more Trump aligned candidate than Haley. She has likely damaged any possibility of becoming the Republican nominee in the future.

While Haley claims she is staying in the give Republican voters a choice, there is likely a more selfish motive. The longer she stays in, the more the left can use her to attack Trump. And while Haley is no friend of the left, she might see an opportunity to get more speaking and punditry engagements by continuing this. Which is a shame, considering she has been a great fighter against the left’s identity politics, and her foreign policy is very good.

As it is, we are almost certainly headed to a Trump v Biden rematch. Unless of course Biden is replaced. Even if Trump is convicted, he likely would still be the Republican nominee. Donald Trump wins the Michigan Republican Primary. It’s only a matter of time before he officially wins the Republican nomination for a third straight time.