Nimrata Nikki Randhawa Haley
Nimrata Nikki Randhawa Haley is an elected official and businesswoman from South Carolina, where she is currently the governor-elect. Haley represents Lexington County in the South Carolina House of Representatives.
Haley was born Nimrata Randhawa in Bamberg, South Carolina on January 20, 1972. Her parents, Dr. Ajit and Raj Randhawa, are Jat Sikh immigrants from Amritsar, India. She has two brothers, Mitti and Charan, and a sister, Simran.
She converted to the faith of her husband, Methodism, right before they were married. 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. Haley's brother Mitti is an active duty officer who has served in the U.S. Army for the past 20 years.
She attended Clemson University and majored in accounting and then joined the FCR Corporation (a waste management and recycling company) before joining her mother's business, Exotica International, an upscale clothing firm in 1994. The family business grew to a multi-million dollar company.
Haley was named to the Board of Directors of the Orangeburg County Chamber of Commerce in 1998. She was named to the Board of Directors of the Lexington Chamber of Commerce in 2003. Haley became treasurer of the National Association of Women Business Owners in 2003 and president in 2004. She 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.
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