Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley reiterated she would not suspend her campaign despite trailing former President Donald Trump by a significant margin.
Haley reiterated her stance to remain in the race during a Thursday appearance on CNN's The Lead with host Jake Tapper.
The CNN host asked Haley about Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel's suggestion that she suspend her campaign. Haley said McDaniel's suggestion was "inappropriate."
"We have had two states that have voted," she said. "You need 1,215 delegates. Donald Trump has 32. I have 17. We still have 48 states and more territories to go before we get there.”
"I’m not going anywhere, Jake,” Haley said.
WATCH:
Haley said she would remain in the race through her home state of South Carolina's upcoming primary.
"Then we’re going to go on to Super Tuesday, and we’re going to keep on going forward," she said. "This is about the fact that we can’t live in chaos anymore.”
"We have got to focus on what it’s going to take to not just get our domestic policy on track, but what are we going to do to prevent wars and to make sure we keep Americans safe?" she added.
"We can’t do that with the two guys there. Americans are telling people that," Haley said of Trump and President Joe Biden, who is seeking a second term in office. "We need to start listening and make sure that we focus on what it takes to win a primary, so that we can get our country back on track."
Tapper questioned if Haley was sincere about staying in the race past the South Carolina primary, to which she said her campaign would be "moving."
"What I will tell you in South Carolina is, we’re going to close that gap," she said, adding her goal was to be "more competitive" in her home state. "It’s always been to build on momentum. We started with 2 percent in Iowa. We ended with 20 percent. We went into New Hampshire. We got 43 percent. In South Carolina, we want to get even more competitive than that."
Haley said "we have a country to save" and insisted her decision to remain in the race stemmed from not wanting any children to live under President Biden's leadership.
"We have been in total distraction for a long time," Haley said. "When America’s distracted, the world is less safe. And all you have to do is look around the world and see that."
"I’m going to stay in this for the long haul, because I think it’s important and I know that we need to get this done," she concluded.
Trump currently holds a commanding 53.5-point advantage over Haley, according to RealClearPolitics.
The two remaining Republican candidates will face off in the Nevada primary on Feb. 8.
