Governor Nikki Haley Nationality American Parents Bill Haley, Carole Haley | Preceded by Jenny Sanford Spouse Nikki Haley (m. 1996) Children Rena Haley, Nalin Haley | |
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Succeeded by Peggy McMaster (First Lady) Alma mater University of North Carolina at Charlotte Occupation Army National Guard officerMilitary technician Education University of North Carolina at Charlotte Similar Nikki Haley, Bobby Jindal, Vincent Sheheen, Jenny Sanford, Tim Scott | ||
Michael Haley is an American officer in the South Carolina Army National Guard and husband of U.S. Ambassador and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley. He had served as the First Gentleman of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017, being the first man to hold the position.
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Personal life
The Haleys met in 1989 as undergraduates at Clemson University. While Nikki Haley is a Clemson graduate, Michael graduated from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte with a degree in business administration. Michael Haley is a graduate of Hilton Head Preparatory School.
Michael and Nikki Haley were married in 1996 in two ceremonies, a Sikh ceremony, and a ceremony at St. Andrew's by-the-Sea, the Methodist church in Hilton Head, where Haley's parents, Carole and Bill, have lived since retiring from jobs in Cleveland, Ohio when Michael was in the ninth grade. Before retiring to Hilton Head, Bill Haley was director of a steel manufacturing plant and Carole Haley taught school.
Haley worked in Exotica International, the clothing store founded by his mother-in-law, Raj Randhawa, before becoming a full-time federal military technician with the South Carolina Army National Guard in 2006.
Career
Haley is employed full-time as a federal military technician with the South Carolina Army National Guard.
Military service
In January 2012, Haley shipped out for a year-long tour of duty in Afghanistan as a captain in the South Carolina Army National Guard. The unit served in Helmand Province as an Agribusiness Development Team helping Afghan farmers improve farming techniques and develop cash crops to replace opium poppies. Haley served as a liaison between the military and civilian authorities. He is thought to have been the first spouse of a Governor to serve on active duty in a war zone.
Marines serving with Haley in Helmand Province nicknamed him FGOSC (pronounced “fuh GOSK”), (first gentleman of South Carolina,)” referencing FLOTUS.
First Gentleman of South Carolina
Since Haley is the first gentleman to become First Gentleman of South Carolina, and because there have only been 15 First Gentlemen in American history, including the 5 men in that role as of 2015, there was speculation about what his role would be. Haley chairs the Foundation that oversees the preservation and management of the South Carolina Governor's Mansion in Columbia.