Haley says she’ll campaign for Trump in 2020

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley on Tuesday said that she not is running for president in 2020 and will support President Trump’s reelection, punctuating widespread speculation about her higher political ambitions following the announcement of her resignation on Tuesday.

“No, I am not running in 2020,” Haley told reporters during an Oval Office meeting with Trump Tuesday morning, during which the president accepted her resignation.

“I look forward to supporting the president in the next election,” she added.

{mosads}News of Haley’s decision to resign broke abruptly Tuesday morning as the White House hastily announced a meeting between the president and his U.N. ambassador.

Trump, sitting alongside Haley in the Oval Office, told reporters she plans to leave at the end of the year and wanted to “take a break” from public service. The president said Haley informed him of her intentions six months ago.

Haley, a former governor of South Carolina, has been viewed as a steadying force in the administration given her mainstream Republican credentials and willingness to, at times, criticize the president.

She is also widely rumored to have her own political ambitions. Tuesday’s news generated widespread speculation Haley could be prepping herself to run for office, though she promptly shut down those murmurs on Tuesday, saying she would support Trump’s reelection.

Haley’s exit comes at a disadvantageous moment for the White House, with the 2018 midterm elections fast approaching. It is also likely to eclipse the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, a major win for an administration that has experienced more turmoil and staff shakeups than most.