Nikki Haley is the First Woman Governor of South Carolina

story by Hilton Head Examiner
written by Rosalie Thompson
photo by AP's David Goldman

Republican Nikki Haley will become the first female governor of South Carolina after defeating Democrat Vincent Sheehen on Tuesday, November 2, 2010 in a hard-fought campaign. Supporters of both candidates were kept in suspense before Haley finally pulled away and was declared the winner.

Independent candidate Morgan Reeves was never a factor in the campaign and received about 2% of the votes cast.

Haley will also become the nation's second Indian-American governor joining Louisiana's Bobby Jindal who is also Indian-American.

Haley posted a message Tuesday morning on her web site urging her supporters to vote. “Over the last 18 months,” she said, “a movement has swept our great state and helped hundreds of thousands of hardworking South Carolinians understand the real power of their voices. Today, it’s time to make our voices heard and reclaim our state.”

Haley almost won the South Carolina GOP nomination outright in May when she received 48.9% of the votes in the Republican primary. She went on to defeat U.S. Rep. Gresham Barrett in a June 22 runoff to become South Carolina's first female gubernatorial candidate.

Two high-profile former governors added their names to the list of Haley supporters during her campaign. In March, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney endorsed her campaign and in May she received the endorsement of Sarah Palin, former Governor of Alaska, who made an appearance in Columbia on behalf of the candidate.