'Haley Voters for Harris' pledge to fight on after Nikki Haley says cease and desist
A group of anti-Trump voters who supported former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley in the Republican presidential primary is responding to a cease and desist letter from Haley demanding that they stop using her name in support of Vice President Kamala Harris.
"Kamala Harris and I are total opposites on every issue. Any attempt to use my name to support her or her agenda is deceptive and wrong," Haley said in a statement. "I support Donald Trump because he understands we need to make America strong, safe, and prosperous."
The Haley Voters for Harris political action committee was formerly known as Haley Voters for Biden, until President Biden dropped out of the presidential race.
The PAC, officially know as PIVOTPAC, was set up to encourage former Haley supporters, many of whom expressed doubts about both Biden and former President Trump, to vote for the Democratic nominee.
According to its FEC filings, it has raised nearly $400,000 in the past year. Most of that money has come from anti-Trump groups. It did not spend any of those funds until February, with its first major expenditure coming with ads on Facebook on March 6, the same day Haley dropped out of the race for president.
In a letter on Haley’s behalf, attorney Michael G. Adams demands that the group stop any use of Haley’s “name, image or likeness that implies her support for the election of Kamala Harris as President of the United States.”
Haley Voters for Harris said in a statement that it does not claim to speak on behalf of Haley or her views.
“There are many other like minded Haley voters who also do not plan to support former President Trump in November. Our rights to engage with voters and encourage them to vote for Vice President Harris – who in our view is the clear better choice for the country – will not be suppressed,” the statement said.
In an interview with NPR, Haley Voters for Harris director Craig Snyder said the group’s name is “a factual statement of the way a lot of people feel and the way a lot of people intend to vote in November.”
After initially declining to endorse Trump, Haley ultimately backed him and delivered a speech at the Republican National Convention encouraging her supporters to do the same. During her campaign, Haley told voters that Biden was likely to step aside and be replaced by Harris.
“Ambassador Haley’s made it clear that she’s joined the Trump train, and that’s her prerogative, but the voters that voted for her are gonna make up their own minds,” Snyder said.
Harris is expected to become the official Democratic nominee after a vote early next month.
