Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley has shown progress in the presidential race in opinion polls, largely from support by college-educated, affluent, suburban professionals - those who are already tired of former US President Donald Trump's rhetoric and legal issues.

Having a shot at gaining traction in the 2024 Republican contest, per supporters and opponents, means she needs to expand that coalition by bringing in more voters residing in rural areas, who are middle- or working-class, or those without college degrees, per eight pollsters and strategists interviewed by Reuters. 

Before the Republican nominating event in Iowa on January 15, Haley has been visiting areas that are more Trump-friendly as she launched a "Farmers for Nikki" coalition in November, while her campaign has been flooding billboards and ads in rural areas to make her more appealing and known.

Haley spoke this month about the small South Carolina town where she grew up which only had 2 traffic lights, telling an audience, "The area I grew up in was much like Iowa," adding, "I grew up playing in a cotton field and in a dairy farm."

She brought up matters of issues in the public healthcare system for veterans, and she stepped up her criticisms of Trump recently as well stating that his style is too chaotic and divisive, which lessens his effectiveness in the race.

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A tough act to follow 

Trump is already leading in the GOP race in Iowa with about 50% support, according to polls, while Haley is in third place behind Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. 

Les Hardy, a truck driver at a local chicken hatchery, attended Haley's town hall, saying that he intended to vote for Trump at first. However, after the event, he was more inclined towards Haley as a result of her straightforward answers to questions from the audience - highlighting her "down home" manner.

"Trump is definitely number 1 in the majority of their eyes," Hardy said, adding, "But number 2, it's anybody's race."

A Reuters/Ipsos poll in December showed that the former president led the Republican arena nationally with 61% support, while his opponents Haley and DeSantis were at 11%. 

Read more: Nikki Haley lashes out at Trump, DeSantis during CNN town hall

20 people at Haley's events in Iowa were interviewed, and the results demonstrated that she was attracting voters who were tired of the Trump rhetoric, and even some who were still leaning towards him.