Nikki Haley

Nikki Haley

Nimrata Nikki Haley is an American politician, diplomat, clothing executive and author. She served as the 116th governor of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017 and as the 29th United States ambassador to the United Nations from 2017 to 2018. She is the first Indian-American in a presidential cabinet.

About Nikki Haley in brief

Summary Nikki HaleyNimrata Nikki Haley is an American politician, diplomat, clothing executive and author. She served as the 116th governor of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017 and as the 29th United States ambassador to the United Nations from 2017 to 2018. She is the first Indian-American in a presidential cabinet. Haley was born in Bamberg, South Carolina, and studied accountancy at Clemson University. She married Michael Haley in 1996 and they have a daughter, Simran, and two sons, Charan and Mitti. Haley’s parents moved to South Carolina after her father received a scholarship offer from the University of British Columbia. Her father was formerly a professor at Punjab Agricultural University, and her mother received her law degree from University of Delhi. Her mother, Raj Randhawa, earned a master’s degree in education and taught for seven years in the Bamberg public schools. In 1976 she started a popular clothing boutique, Exotica International, which closed in 2008. In 2004, Haley ran for the South Carolina House of Representatives to represent District 87 in Lexington County. She challenged incumbent state representative Larry Koon in the Republican primary. In the primary election, she forced a runoff as Koon did not win a majority, but she placed second with 40% of the vote. In 2010, during her third term, she was elected governor and won re-election in 2014. She was unopposed in the general election and was re-elected for a second term in 2006. In 2017, then President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate then South Carolina Governor Haley as United States Ambassador to the UN.

She affirmed the United States’ willingness to use military force in response to further North Korean missile tests in the wake of the 2017 North Korea crisis, and supported Israel thirteen times. She voluntarily stepped down on December 31, 2018. Haley has one sister and two brothers. Her sister Simran became a radio host and Fashion Institute of Technology alumna. Her brother Mitti retired as a member of the U.S. Army Chemical Corps having served in Desert Storm; her second brother is a web designer. Haley became treasurer of the National Association of Women Business Owners in 2003, and president in 2004. She also served on the Lexington Medical Foundation, Lexington County Sheriff’s Foundation, and West Metro Republican Women. In 2005, Haley was the only freshman legislator to be named to the General Assembly’s General Assembly caucus. One of Haley’s stated goals was to lower taxes. In 2008, she voted against a proposed cigarette surtax despite criticism that would have used the revenue from the tax on smoking from the tobacco industry. In 2009, she won re election to a third term to a seat in the South South Carolina General Assembly, defeating Democrat Edgar Gomez 83–17%. Haley was elected chair of the South. South Carolina Assembly in 2005, and served three terms in the General. Assembly. In 2012, she became the first Asian-American female governor, and the second governor of Indian descent.