Nikki Haley is the GOP’s New Mama Grizzly

Nikki Haley speaks at the Republican Jewish Coalition’s 2023 Annual Leadership Summit in Las Vegas. Photo courtesy of Gage Skidmore.

On March 6, 2024, Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley officially suspended her campaign. While former President Donald Trump clinched the Republican nomination, Haley’s run as Trump’s leading competitor sets her apart as the closest a Republican woman has ever been to the presidency, with only four other Republican women having undertaken a prominent campaign in the 21st century. Despite being the sole woman on the campaign trail for the Republican nomination, Nikki Haley is part of a rising group of Republican women who over the past 20 years have shaken up the GOP’s status quo. 

In a party characterized by patriarchal values, Nikki Haley and other contemporary female Republican leaders have curated an image of Republican women that is both palatable to conservative understandings of gender roles while upending an embedded history of male leadership within the GOP. This paradoxical position results from the “double bind” constraining female leaders, a phenomenon referring to the difficulty for female politicians to both charm voters with friendliness and maintain a persuasive leadership attitude to accomplish party goals. 

The double bind systemically places women at an impasse: they are penalized for not displaying stereotypically masculine notions of leadership in positions of power but are also denounced if they lack stereotypically feminine traits. Even as women enter positions of power and gain agency in contemporary politics, it is arduous to bypass the elusive double bind, forcing women to strike a balance between likability and competence. Those deemed likable are written off as ditzy, while strong-willed women are labeled as difficult. 

In the Republican Party, the double bind forms the broader contextual paradox imbued in the GOP’s party dynamics. However, through the “mama grizzly” archetype, Nikki Haley has circumvented the double bind by embracing a traditionally feminist appearance in alignment with conservative Christian values. 

The term “mama grizzly” was dubbed by former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, the late Senator John McCain’s pick for vice president in 2008. Though Palin never made it to the White House, she became a political star by cultivating the self-proclaimed “mama grizzly” image as a relatable Republican woman with conservative Christian values based around motherhood, family, and beauty. The “mama grizzly” label appeals to conservative voters because it reinforces their beliefs of women’s traditional values and maternal responsibilities, paradoxically dampening pushback for Republican female authority.

The Emergence of Nikki Haley’s Mama Grizzly Image

When Nikki Haley first entered the political stage, the former governor of South Carolina and US ambassador to the United Nations was not expected to reach such prominence. When Haley entered as a “no-name” candidate in the 2010 South Carolina gubernatorial election, competitors expressed doubt over her unknown status and gender. Yet, as her career progressed, she gained public favor and never lost an election prior to her presidential bid. 

Though many doubted her ability to perform well in the Republican primaries, her performance in the GOP debates captured the public’s attention. Audiences approved of her well-structured responses to tense questions on abortion, national debt, funding for Ukraine, and Trump. Her skillful campaigning was rewarded as she overtook Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who fell out of public favor after scandals involving a lawsuit with Disney, state abortion legislation, and heeled footwear. 

Haley’s presidential campaign appealed to moderate conservatives dissatisfied with Trump’s divisive politics, particularly suburban and independent women. To achieve dominance in a party rife with gender inequity, embodied by sexist comments directed toward Haley from Trump and other Republican nominees, Haley’s success can be attributed to a careful branding to make herself fit within Republicans’ conception of traditional gender roles. 

Haley’s campaigning exemplified the “mama grizzly” archetype. She donned sensible dresses with heels, posed in pictures hunting and fishing, and passionately embraced the GOP’s positions on guns, abortion, immigration, and taxes. Haley’s closing statement in the November 8 GOP debate underscored the archetype’s logic: “I wear heels. They’re not for a fashion statement. They’re for ammunition.” Through her attachments of feminine stereotypes to conventionally masculine traits, Nikki Haly has resurrected Palin’s “mama grizzly” to new heights.

To further reinforce the label, Haley utilized motherhood as a political asset to connect with her constituencies. As a mother to two young adults, she justified her candidacy by citing her role as a mother: “I’m a mom. And the truth is, I don’t want my kids growing up like this. I don’t feel comfortable with the way the country is and just letting my kids have to deal with it.” Haley’s framing of motherhood as an electoral advantage reinforced the expectation that child-bearing is a must for female leaders, with some research suggesting that voters often distrust women without children.

However, while these conservative leaders lean into their femininity, they are sure to not be reduced to docile homemakers. Their feminine appeals are armed with more traditionally masculine, militant, and rugged qualities, as evidenced by Representative Lauren Boebert’s, Republican of Colorado’s 3rd District, ammunition-filled Christmas tweet, Haley’s NRA endorsement, and Palin’s quip: “Proudly Clinging To God, Guns, and Constitutional Rights to Keep ’Em.” 

By embodying the Republican notion of a traditional woman, Republican female politicians are able to work their way up the political ladder. Palin coined the term “mama grizzly,” but the political narrative of mother-knows-best has been followed by the likes of Representative Boebert, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, Republican of Georgia’s 14th district, and Haley. Through their claims to motherhood, they have waged a war against supposed critical race theory in classroom instruction, banned books with LGBTQ themes, and demanded more restrictive abortion laws—all in the name of protecting children.

How Haley’s Campaign Affects the GOP’s Success

Despite the end of Haley’s presidential campaign, her political sway within the GOP may have significant implications for the party’s future. The party’s sexist tendencies have cost them female voters, particularly with Trump as the Republican nominee. When Haley suspended her campaign, she did not endorse Trump, but instead compelled him to earn the votes of her supporters. Thus, Republican supporters of Haley have expressed that, despite their partisan beliefs, her drop would direct them to vote against party lines. While Haley’s campaign is over, her success as the Republican runner-up highlights the ascent of Republican women in the party’s male-dominated arena, proving that the GOP needs more female leadership to capture a wider voter base. At the 2024 Republican National Convention, however, Haley went on to unequivocally endorse Trump, urging: “My message to them is simple. You don’t have to agree with Trump 100% of the time to vote for him. Take it from me.” 

Haley’s rise to national prominence underscores the GOP’s shifting landscape. Ironically, by fitting into gender roles, women like Haley are increasingly challenging party conventions of male leadership, subtly reshaping the GOP identity. While Republican women may mirror the same ideals as their male counterparts, their presence in the party projects the conviction that women belong in positions of power. Against all odds, Nikki Haley outlasted her male competitors as Trump’s main opponent. Her popularity, in line with a growing trend of powerful women in Republican politics, was possible only through a careful balance of fulfilling gender stereotypes and hard-hitting conservative policies to escape the double bind. Even though she has ultimately endorsed Trump, her steady following suggests that some voters might have grown fond of a “mama grizzly” politico. The GOP’s push for more guns, glory, and “mama grizzlies” is here to stay.

Chantel Hope (BC ’27) is a staff writer for CPR. She is a sophomore studying environmental science and economics. Outside of CPR, she enjoys drinking tea, falling at the climbing gym, and getting lost backpacking.