Trump Blasts 'Imposter' Haley After She Questions His Mental Fitness

Former President Donald Trump tore into Nikki Haley during his victory speech following the New Hampshire primary election Tuesday night.

Trump celebrated his victory during a speech in Nashua, attacking Haley and pushing back on her assertions she would pose a stronger challenge to Democrats in the general election. Although Trump won the night, Haley had an optimistic tone, pledging to stay in the race, during her own speech.

"Who the hell was the imposter that went up on the stage before and claimed a victory?" Trump said.

Trump said Haley is "not going to win" the presidential election but predicted that Democrats would launch investigations into her "in 15 minutes" if she made it to the Oval Office. He also accused her of "doing a speech like she won" the state.

Haley, during her speech earlier in the evening, acknowledged Trump's victory but stayed defiant, asserting that Republicans have "lost almost every competitive election" with the former president's impact. She also continued to raise concerns about Trump's age. She addedthat whichever party "retires its 80-year-old candidate" will be the one that prevails in November.

"He thinks he'd do better [on a mental test] than me. Maybe he would, maybe he wouldn't. But if he thinks that, then he should have no problem standing on a debate stage with me," Haley said.

She pledged to stay in the race, rejecting calls from some conservatives for her to drop out. She said voters in South Carolina "don't want a coronation" of the Republican primary.

"The political class is falling all over themselves, saying this race is over. I have news for all of them. New Hampshire is first in the nation—it is not the last in the nation," Haley said.

The final days of the New Hampshire campaign saw each candidate ramp up their attacks against each other, with Haley questioning Trump's fitness to serve and Trump attacking Haley as a "RINO," the derisive acronym for "Republican in name only."

Haley has sought to convince New Hampshire voters that she is a more electable alternative to Trump, pointing to several polls showing her leading President Joe Biden by a wider margin than Trump would in hypothetical general matchups.

While Trump has sought to turn out his core base of supporters, Haley has appealed to more traditional conservatives and independent voters.

New Hampshire's primary followed the Iowa caucuses, which saw Trump score a major victory against his rivals. Trump received 51 percent support in Iowa, while 21.3 percent of caucus-goers backed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Haley placed third, securing support from 19.1 percent.

DeSantis has since dropped out of the race, throwing his support behind Trump just days before the New Hampshire primary.