Date Died: Living

Place Buried: TBD

Occupation: Accountant

High School in Bamberg, SC

Clemson University - B.S. in Accounting

SC House of Representatives, 2005-2011

She was named to the Board of Directors of the Lexington Chamber of Commerce in 2003. She became treasurer of the National Association of Women Business Owners in 2003 and president in 2004. Nikki chaired the Lexington Gala to raise funds for the local hospital. She also serves on the Lexington Medical Foundation, Lexington County Sheriff’s Foundation, West Metro Republican Women, President of the South Carolina Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners, Chairman for 2006 Friends of Scouting Leadership Division campaign and is a member of the Rotary Club in Lexington.

In 2004, she ran for the South Carolina House of Representatives against incumbent Republican representative Larry Koon. Koon, who had served since 1975, was the longest-serving member of the SC House. In the primary election, Haley won 40% of the vote (2,247 votes) to Koon's 42% (2,354 votes), thus forcing a runoff. Her platform was anti-tax and fiscally conservative with an emphasis on education.

In the runoff, Haley won with 54.7% (2,928 votes) of the total. She then ran unopposed for the House seat as there was no Democratic opponent. She became the first Indian-American GOP state legislator in the United States.

She has served as secretary of the Medical, Military, Public and Municipal Affairs committees. She also was elected chairman of the Freshman caucus in 2005 and elected as a Majority whip in the South Carolina General Assembly. She was the only freshman legislator named to a whip spot.

Nikki Haley was born in Bamberg, South Carolina and raised as a Sikh. Her parents Dr. Ajit and Raj Randhawa are Indian Punjabi Sikh immigrants from Amritsar and she has an older brother Mitti, sister Simran Singh, and younger brother Charan. She went to Clemson University and majored in Accounting and then joined the FCR Corporation before joining her mother's business in 1994. The family business grew to a multi million dollar company.

On September 6, 1996 she married Michael Haley in both a Methodist church ceremony and a Sikh gurdwara. Haley identifies herself today as a Christian, but also attends both Sikh and Methodist services out of respect for her parents' culture. She sits on the board for Mt. Horeb United Methodist Church.

Michael is a federal employee with the United States Department of the Army and an officer in the South Carolina Army National Guard. Together they have two children, Rena and Nalin.

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