Nikki Haley releases delegates, urges support for Donald Trump

July 9 (UPI) -- South Carolina's former Gov. Nikki Haley on Tuesday announced she has released delegates that she secured during her Republican primary campaign and is urging them to support former President Donald Trump .

"The nominating convention is a time for Republican unity," Haley said in a statement . " Joe Biden is not competent to serve a second term and Kamala Harris would be a disaster for America."

Haley said the nation needs a "president who would hold our enemies to account, secure our border, cut our debt and get our economy back on track" while urging her delegates to support Trump at the nominating convention next week.

The four-day Republican National Convention is scheduled to start Monday at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.

Haley secured 97 delegates while campaigning for the GOP nomination for president but ended her campaign a day after losing all states except Vermont during the Super Tuesday primaries held on March 5.

Haley said she won't attend the GOP convention.

Her spokesperson, Chaney Denton, said Haley wasn't invited to the convention and is "fine with that. Trump deserves the convention he wants."

Denton said Haley has "made it clear she's voting for him and wishes him the best."

Trump, the first U.S. president to be a convicted felon, needs a simple majority of the 2,429 delegates estimated to attend the GOP convention to vote in favor of his candidacy to formally be nominated as the Republican candidate for the presidency.

The Democratic Party National Convention is scheduled Aug. 19 through 22 at the United Center in Chicago.