Koch network pulls funding for Haley as billionaire backers 'take stock' of humiliating GOP primary defeat in her home state

A network backed by billionaire Charles Koch has decided to pull funding for Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley as it 'takes stock' after her loss in her home state.

Americans For Prosperity Action, the influential conservative organization backing Haley in the Republican presidential primary, has decided to cease its financial support for her campaign. 

CEO Emily Seidel announced on Sunday that the group's political arm, AFP Action, needed to reassess its spending priorities following Haley's defeat in the South Carolina primary.

AFP has allocated over $32 million in support of Haley, since endorsing her in late November, according to records from the Federal Election Commission. The group, founded in 2004, is one of the most influential American conservative organizations, backed by billionaire brothers Charles Koch and David Koch. 

'She has made it clear that she will continue to fight and we wholeheartedly support her in this effort,' Seidel wrote. 'But given the challenges in the primary states ahead, we don't believe any outside group can make a material difference to widen her path to victory.'

The Koch-back group said it would shift its focus to competitive Senate and House races instead, Seidel said in an internal email obtained by POLITICO.

Despite expressing support for Haley's ongoing efforts, Seidel said the group believes that external backing would not significantly impact her chances of victory - acknowledging the challenges that remain ahead in the primary states.

'If Donald Trump is at the top of the Republican ticket, the risk of one-party rule by a Democratic Party captured by the Progressive Left is severe and would do irreparable damage to the country,' Seidel wrote Sunday. 

'The last three election cycles have painted a very clear picture of what we can expect from voters who consistently rejected Donald Trump and his impact on the Republican party brand.' 

'And we should expect this to increase further as the criminal trials progress.'

This decision marks another setback for Haley's presidential aspirations, as she has faced defeats in multiple early primary states. 

Despite her significant loss to former President Donald Trump in her home state of South Carolina, Haley has vowed to continue her campaign at least until Super Tuesday on March 5.

Americans For Prosperity Action had previously financed advertisements and field operations aimed at persuading Republican voters to support an alternative to Trump.

In November, the group officially endorsed Haley as their preferred candidate against Trump. 

The group has since engaged millions of voters in addition to spending over 30 million dollars worth of ads on Haley's behalf.

'AFP is a great organization and ally in the fight for freedom and conservative government. We thank them for their tremendous help in this race,' Haley's campaign said in a statement on Sunday. 

'Our fight continues, and with more than $1 million coming in from grassroots conservatives in just the last 24 hours, we have plenty of fuel to keep going. We have a country to save.'

Donald Trump took another step towards a general election rematch with Joe Biden by decimating Nikki Haley in her home state in the South Carolina Republican primary.

Trump declared his swift victory at his Election Day party held on the South Carolina State Fairgrounds in Columbia, saying with a smirk: 'This was a little sooner than we anticipated.'

Trump's victory builds on the surging momentum he has built coming out of wins in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada.

Haley's loss on Saturday marks the first time a Republican candidate has lost their home state presidential primary election in more than 50 years. The previous was Richard Nixon, who lost California's primary to Ronald Reagan – who was also from California.

But Haley said during a 'state of the race' speech on Tuesday that she was 'far from' ending her bid despite her underwhelming performance in the primary so far and dismal polling that showed her trailing Trump in national and state elections by large margins.

The former South Carolina governor said she plans to stay in the 2024 Republican primary until Super Tuesday on March 5, when 16 states and a territory hold contests and an astounding 874 delegates are up for grabs in that single day.

Trump spoke for just over 20 minutes – and even after he left the stage, the Associated Press was only reporting 6 percent of the vote counted in South Carolina.