Donald Trump's transition team has floated South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley as a possible pick for a Cabinet position, and she met with the president-elect Thursday, transition officials said.
Despite Haley's critical comments about Trump throughout much of the campaign and her reluctance to support his candidacy, she is among those Trump will consider for secretary of state under his administration.
During the primaries, Haley endorsed Florida Senator Marco Rubio's presidential candidacy, and as recently as last month said she was "not a fan" of Trump but would vote for him anyway to keep his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, out of the White House.
Haley began her political career in 2004 when she ran for the South Carolina House of Representatives, beating incumbent Larry Koon in the Republican primary before running unopposed in the general election. She easily won re-election in her two subsequent campaigns in 2006 and 2008.
Run for governor
In 2010, Haley ran for governor with the support of incumbent Mark Sanford after Sanford took a highly publicized hiatus from the governorship following the discovery that he was involved in an extramarital affair.
Haley beat Democrat Vincent Sheheen 51 percent to 47 percent to become the state's first Indian-American governor. She beat Sheheen 55 percent to 41 percent in the 2014 election.
Prior to her career in politics, Haley helped turn her mother's clothing business, Exotica International, into a multimillion-dollar company. She held positions on the boards of both the Orangeburg County and Lexington chambers of commerce before becoming the treasurer of the National Association of Women Business Owners in 2003 and president in 2004.
Both her parents, Ajit Singh Randhawa and Raj Kaur Randhawa, are immigrants from India.
Nikki Haley
— Born Nimrata "Nikki" Randhawa on January 20, 1972, in Bamberg, South Carolina.
— Graduated from Clemson University in 1994 with a bachelor of science degree in accounting.
— Joined her mother's business, Exotica International, in 1994.
— Named a member of the Orangeburg County Chamber of Commerce in 1998.
— Named a member of the Lexington Board of Directors in 2003.
— Selected as president of the National Association of Women Business Owners in 2004.
— Served in the South Carolina House of Representatives from 2004 to 2010.
— Elected governor of South Carolina in 2010; re-elected in 2014.
