Nikki Haleythe former US ambassador to the UN who is now vying for the Republican nomination for the 2024 presidential election, avoided on Wednesday clearly stating that one of the main causes of the Civil War was slavery, prompting strong reactions from Democrats and some internal party opponents.

At a campaign rally in northern New Hampshire one of the attendees asked Haley what she thought was the cause of the Civil War, according to footage broadcast by CNN and several other television channels. She paused at first, then commented, “Don’t ask me easy questions. I mean, I think the reason was how the government would run, what you could and couldn’t do, individual liberties.”

The man who had asked the question replied: “In the year 2023, I am amazed that you answer without mentioning the word slavery.”

During the Civil War (1861-65) the southern states declared their independence from the USA and fought to continue the slavery regime, which had been abolished in the rest of the country.

“What do you want me to say about slavery?” Hayley questioned, visibly defensive. Then he said to the crowd, “Next question.”

In a first reaction, US President Joe Biden posted a video of Haley’s statements and in the caption answered the question himself: “It was slavery.”

A spokesman for her inner-party rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis, commented that Haley “did it on her own.”

This morning, the politician tried to correct her statement, speaking to a local radio station. “Of course war is associated with slavery, we all know that,” he said.

Many, however, remembered Haley’s stance when she was governor of South Carolina – the first state to secede from the US in 1861. Haley had refused to remove the Confederate flag from public buildings, although it is considered symbol of slavery. He only changed his mind after a white supremacist opened fire inside a church, killing nine African-American worshipers, in 2015.

In the polls for the nomination of the Republican party, Donald Trump leads with a percentage of 61%. Haley and DeSandis follow with 11%.