RNC speakers: What to know about Nikki Haley
Former ambassador to the UN is considered a possible 2024 contender
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley is one of several reported 2024 presidential hopefuls who secured a speaking slot at the Republican National Convention next week.
PRESIDENT TRUMP TO PARTICIPATE IN EVERY DAY OF REPUBLICAN CONVENTION
Democrats wrapped up their mostly virtual nominating convention last week. Republicans are preparing for the opening night of their convention on Monday, when Haley is scheduled to speak.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Republican Convention was supposed to take place in Charlotte, N.C., but coronavirus concerns forced the event to go mostly remote as well. President Trump is set to give his acceptance speech from the White House on Thursday, Aug. 27, the final day of the 2020 convention.
Here are four things to know about Haley:
1. Despite exiting her role as ambassador early, she's remained a close ally of the Trump administration
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}When Haley abruptly submitted her resignation in October 2018, she stayed mum about her next move, only assuring that she would not challenge Trump in 2020 primaries for the Republican nomination.
"Hopefully you'll be coming back at some point, maybe in another capacity," President Trump told Haley when she announced she would be leaving. "You can have your pick."
Nikki Haley, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations (UN), speaks during the Skybridge Alternatives (SALT) conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., on Thursday, May 9, 2019. Photographer: Joe Buglewicz/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Haley was so popular within the party that she had to quell rumors that she might replace Vice President Mike Pence on the 2020 ticket.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}2. She's considered a 2024 contender
Haley's name is being floated as a 2024 Republican presidential contender along with others like Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., Gov. Larry Hogan, R-Md., and Vice President Mike Pence.
The 2024 race will be more than just a contest for the nomination: It will be also a battle to shape the GOP going forward.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}3. She's been busy since leaving public life
Haley explains her belief in term limits and her decision to leave the administration in her memoir, "With All Due Respect: Defending America with Grit and Grace.” She wrote 2019 was her first in 14 years as a private citizen, where she was free to “sleep in” and “read books again.”
A few months after her resignation, Haley was tapped for a seat on Boeing’s board of directors, a position that earned a minimum annual compensation of $315,000 as of 2017. She resigned from the position in March, citing opposition to bailouts for the aerospace industry.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Haley and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice participate in a panel discussion at a forum sponsored by the George W. Bush Institute in New York, Oct. 19, 2017. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) (AP)
Around the same time in February 2019, Haley launched policy group Stand for America, focusing on term limits, border security and public safety, fighting socialism and international threats.
4. Her political career started in the South Carolina House of Representatives
Haley was first elected to South Carolina's state legislature in 2004, served three terms and then was elected governor of the state. She was elected to a second term but didn't finish it after being appointed an ambassador by Trump.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News' Morgan Phillips and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this post.