Nikki Haley Projected Winner of D.C. Swamp Republican Primary AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) was the projected winner in the Washington, DC, Republican primary election on Sunday evening.

Haley, a lobbyist favorite, beat “America First” former President Donald Trump by nearly 30 points with Republican voters in the nation's capital — known more colloquially as “the swamp.”  The polls closed a 7 p.m. and the Associated Press (AP) called the race around 8:30 p.m., with Haley ahead 63 percent to 33 percent.

Broken down, nearly 1,300 voters cast a ballot for Haley and nearly 680 for former President Trump.

BREAKING: Nikki Haley wins the District of Columbia Republican primary, NBC News projects. https://t.co/iYnZUuDFL8 pic.twitter.com/4s5xCDPCIn

— NBC News (@NBCNews) March 4, 2024

Haley has lost every other Republican primary so far, including in her home state of South Carolina. Haley notably spent over $76 million trying to defeat Trump in four primary states: Michigan, South Carolina, New Hampshire, and Iowa.

Haley is the last Republican challenger to stay in the race despite half a dozen Trump victories in early voting states. Haley told NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday that she is planning to stay in the race “as long as we are competitive.”

“I’ve always said this needs to be competitive. As long as we are competitive, as long as we’re showing there is a place for us, I’m going to continue to fight. That’s always been the case,” she said.

“If the people want to see me go forward, they’ll show it. They’ll show it in their votes. They’ll show it in their donations. They’ll show it in the fact that they want us to continue to go forward,” she added.

The Guardian notes Haley will pick up 19 delegates from her win, putting her total at 43 — 1,172 delegates short of the 1,215 delegates needed to clinch the nomination.

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