Nevada will be the next state to vote for the Republican nominee for president. But one could be forgiven for not remembering that fact, given the lack of media attention.

       Both Nikki Haley and Donald Trump, the only two prominent contenders remaining in the fight for the Republican presidential nomination, are technically on the ballot in Nevada. But they are on different ones — Ms Haley is competing in the state’s primary, and Donald Trump is competing in the caucuses. The two won’t actually be “against” each other in the state, as Republican voters can choose to participate in both the primary and the caucus, which will be held on different days.

       It’s a bewildering system that has sapped almost the entirety of the state’s political relevance for the 2024 primary season. And it’s all thanks to 2020, when a delay in the results led to many Democratic political leaders in the state, includind the late Harry Reid, pushing for the state to abandon the caucus system in favour of a primary. Only, they didn’t: Nevada now has both.

       Nevada’s Republicans unsuccessfully fought in court to stop the primary from going forward, having opposed the switch. They lost, and a judge ruled last year that both contests would take place — the state GOP can then decide how to allocate delegates to participants on its own. The GOP will be awarding those delegates, unsurprisingly, to the winner of the caucus.

       That is certain to be Donald Trump, given Ms Haley’s nonparticipation. He’ll walk out of the state up 26 delegates without having to do much in the way of campaigning against Ms Haley; he did, however, still head to the state for a rally this past Sunday. The state retains significant importance for the general election; in 2020, it flipped from red to blue and helped usher in Joe Biden’s victory.

       For that reason, the Biden campaign is already eyeing the state as well. Vice President Kamala Harris was in town for a campaign rally this weekend, held just a short distance away from Mr Trump’s on the same day.

       In Ms Haley’s case, the real battle in the days ahead remains South Carolina. Her home state where she served two terms as governor, Ms Haley is hoping for another upset performance against Mr Trump in the hopes of remaining a relevant contender in the 2024 primary. Mr Trump continues to maintain a strong lead in both polling and now in the delegate battle required to secure the nomination itself.

       Recognising this, Ms Haley’s campaign is focusing its attention on the 24 February primary in South Carolina, and on Tuesday announced two events planned for the next day across the Palmetto State.

       She has vowed to remain in the race past South Carolina; however, her path to victory remains a steep climb after a second-place finish in New Hamsphire where she failed to come within single digits of the frontrunner.