Nikki Haley will be South Carolina's first female governor
(CNN) - It was shortly after midnight ET when South Carolina Governor-elect Nikki Haley stepped before her supporters in Columbia.
"Trust me, we wanted to be here earlier than we were," she told them. Then, waving both arms, she exhorted the crowd, "But get excited!"
Haley, a Republican State Representative, defeated Democratic State Senator Vincent Sheheen and will become South Carolina's first-ever female governor as well as the nation's only Indian-American female governor. "You know, tomorrow morning there's going to be a lot of news and a lot of observers that say we made history and in some ways, you can look at me and say we did," Haley told the crowd. "But what I want this to be is that we're turning a page. We're turning a page on where we've been but the history's going to be on where we go."
Haley, whose political outlook echoes many Tea Party themes, was buoyed by Sarah Palin's endorsement during last June's crowded GOP primary. Tonight Haley told her supporters, "Eighteen months ago, I saw a state and a federal government losing control. Arrogant in its spending. Arrogant in its responsibility and a need to step up and say we need to take our state and our country back." She continued, "We wanted government to remember that every dollar was not government's money it's the taxpayers' dollars and how we spend it matters. Today the people of south carolina embraced that message."
"This movement was never meant to be about a person. It was never meant to be about an election," said Haley, "This movement was about to be how we take our state and our country back."
Take our state back? cmon, give me a break. SC is as RED a state as it gets including the state legislature and outgoing governor. The GOP has kept this state in the dark since Reagan and I guess another 4 years of arrogance and ignorance. The real losers are the people of SC and the children who go to school everyday in one of the worst educational systems in the USA. SC, we only have ourselves to blame.
Talk is cheap.
And once again South Carolina proves to be a a state run by stupid people who are elected by stupid people.
And yes, I am from there.
That"s right Nikki. take your country back from the white man that stole it . You go gril.
South Carolina voted for Nikki Haley. Historic? It will be interesting to see how one-liners and very simplistic views will affect South Carolina in the next years. Can the misinformation and mudslinging be transformed in real and positive work for the people or will SC just sink even lower? Will Ms Haley last or will she follow her idol and quit on the people…We will hold our judgment and see what happens…