Namrata “Nikki” Randhawa Haley - sworn in Governor

The daughter of Sikh immigrants from Punjab, Indian-American Namrata “Nikki” Randhawa Haley proudly recollected her Indian heritage while being sworn in as the first woman and non-white Governor of South Carolina.

“I stand before you today, the proud daughter of Indian immigrants,” said Ms. Haley in her inaugural speech on the State House's south steps on Wednesday.

She commented that Indian Community in USA are:
- Highest Educated
- Highest Per Capita Income
- Least Dependent on Govt Assistant
- Most philanthropic of any community

In the 2010 South Carolina gubernatorial election, Haley was endorsed for the Republican nomination by former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, former South Carolina First Lady Jenny Sanford, and former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.[4][5][6] On June 8, 2010, she finished first in the four-way Republican primary election with 49% of the vote, but fell short of the 50% required to avoid a runoff election. Haley won the runoff on June 22 with 65%,[7] and proceeded to win the general election by a 51%-47% margin.
Haley is the first non-white[[1]] and the first woman to serve as Governor of South Carolina, and the second Indian-American governor in the country, after Bobby Jindal of Louisiana. At the age of 38, she also displaced Jindal as the youngest current governor in the U.S.[8][9] She has already been mentioned as a "long shot" candidate in the 2012 U.S. presidential election.[10]

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