Former president Donald Trump’s GOP-primary rival Nikki Haley will speak at the upcoming Republican National Convention, a change of plans first revealed around the time of the failed assassination attempt against Trump on Saturday.
Haley is set to speak at the Republican convention despite initially not being invited after a bitter primary campaign, according to multiple reports. Her presence at the convention will be a strong symbol of the GOP’s unity following the assassination attempt on Trump during a rally in Butler, Pa.
It’s unclear when exactly Haley was invited, but the news came out during the fervor surrounding the failed assassination attempt.
Last night, Haley quickly condemned the assassination attempt against Trump and sent her prayers to his family.
“This should horrify every freedom loving American. Violence against presidential candidates must never be normalized,” she said on X. “We are lifting up Donald Trump, the entire Trump family, and all in attendance in prayer.”
Haley received the second-most delegates of any Republican candidate during the primary cycle and won one state, Vermont, on Super Tuesday. She was also victorious in the Washington, D.C., Republican primary.
Before she was invited to speak, Haley directed her delegates to select Trump as the party’s nominee. Haley previously said she will be voting for Trump and urged him to do more to court her supporters.
From 2017 to 2018, Haley was Trump’s U.N. ambassador and routinely defended his foreign-policy moves. Once her campaign concluded, Haley joined the conservative Hudson Institute, a well-known foreign-policy think tank.
The Republican convention is set to begin on Monday in Milwaukee, Wis., and it will feature many GOP politicians, party leaders, conservative activists, celebrities, and Trump-family members.
Florida governor Ron DeSantis, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, and North Dakota governor Doug Burgum, all three of whom ran in the GOP presidential primary, are among the politicians scheduled to deliver speeches.
A day after the failed assassination attempt, Trump said he will be traveling to Milwaukee as scheduled for the Republican convention, where he will officially become the party’s 2024 presidential nominee.
“Based on yesterday’s terrible events, I was going to delay my trip to Wisconsin, and The Republican National Convention, by two days, but have just decided that I cannot allow a ‘shooter,’ or potential assassin, to force change to scheduling, or anything else. Therefore, I will be leaving for Milwaukee, as scheduled, at 3:30 P.M. TODAY,” Trump said on Truth Social.
As he was onstage in Butler, Pa., on Saturday, a bullet grazed Trump’s right ear, drawing blood and knocking him the ground. Secret Service agents rushed to the stage to help Trump to his feet, and once he got up, Trump pumped his fist and chanted “Fight!” to the terrified crowd.
Trump’s defiance in the face of violence and the photos of him pumping his fist immediately became an iconic representation of the charisma at the heart of his political career.
Correction: An earlier version of this story said Haley was invited after the assassination attempt on Trump. This story has been updated to clarify when Haley was invited to the convention.