Nikki Haley wants to be the GOP's Trump alternative. Ron DeSantis and others are trying to stop her

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November 2nd, 2023

Republican presidential candidate and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, left, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, speaks during a Republican presidential primary debate hosted by FOX Business Network and Univision, Sept. 27, 2023, at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif. Haley has been rising with donors and voters thanks in part to strong debate performances and the campaign's increased focus on foreign policy. That's come partly at the expense of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. But donors and voters seeking an alternative to former President Donald Trump haven't fully coalesced around Haley. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)

At a recent closed-door meeting of roughly 60 millionaires and billionaires, one of the Republican Party’s most influential donors stood in the well of Dallas’ historic Old Parkland debate chamber and praised Nikki Haley’s presidential candidacy.

But Paul Singer deliberately stopped short of endorsing the former U.N. ambassador and South Carolina governor. The New York hedge fund executive instead spoke highly of Haley’s Republican rivals as well, naming Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott. He even praised aspects of Donald Trump’s presidency, despite Singer’s strong preference — like that of others in the room — to move past the former president.

The moment, described by two people who were inside the meeting last month and spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations, captures the conundrum facing the many Republican leaders eager to coalesce behind a clear Trump alternative.

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