According to Nate Cohn’s analysis in the New York Times, Nikki Haley has now passed up her finest opportunity to influence the direction of the Republican race.
He composes: Even by itself, Trump’s 12-point victory margin is not very noteworthy. He really won by a narrower margin than most pre-election polls had predicted.
The fact that Haley had the best chance to turn the tide of the election in New Hampshire is what makes Trump’s win so significant and begs the issue of whether the contest is over.
It was perhaps her best chance to win a state overall. She might not be able to win anywhere if she couldn’t win here. Maeve Reston and Ashley Parker of the Washington Post write that despite Haley’s campaign’s insistence that they will fight another day, Trump’s machine has continued to roll.
They jot down: Haley’s chances of winning were further increased when people in New Hampshire who may have helped her win instead opted for Trump. Even while Haley outperformed several pre-election pollsters’ predictions, she still lost handily.
Haley’s campaign maintains that up to twelve states remain, several of which permitted independent voters to cast ballots in the Super Tuesday contests on March 5 and Michigan, provide “fertile ground” for Haley since they have open or semi-open primaries.