Nikki Haley

Nimarata Nikki Haley is an American politician and diplomat who served as the 116th governor of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017 and as the 29th U.S. ambassador to the United Nations from January 2017 to December 2018. A Republican, Haley is the first Indian American to serve in a presidential cabinet. She was a candidate in the 2024 Republican Party presidential primaries. Her victory in the Washington, D.C. primary on March 3, 2024 made her the first woman ever to win a Republican Party presidential primary contest.
Haley joined her family's clothing business before serving as treasurer and then president of the National Association of Women Business Owners. She was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives in 2004 and served three terms. In 2010, during her third term, she was elected governor of South Carolina. Haley was South Carolina's first female governor and the second U.S. governor of Indian descent, after Bobby Jindal of Louisiana. During her time as governor, she received national attention for leading the state's response to the 2015 Charleston church shooting.