The Washington Examiner reports that Maj. Michael Haley, the husband of Nikki Haley, has been deployed to Africa. 

Michael Haley, according to the outlet, is a member of the South Carolina Army National Guard. And, it is in this capacity - as a staff officer with the 218th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade - that he has been deployed to Africa, where he will spend the next year.

As for what the brigade will be doing there, the National Guard says that it will provide support to the Horn of Africa.

According to the United Nations, the region - particularly Somalia, Ethiopia, and Kenya - is facing its worst drought in 40 years. The brigade will be helping the more than 43 million who are in need of assistance because of the drought.

Background

This comes as Haley's wife, Nikki Haley, is making a run for the U.S. presidency as a Republican.

Nikki Haley is the former governor of South Carolina and the former ambassador to the United Nations for the administration of former President Donald Trump.

Haley, just like every other 2024 Republican presidential candidate, is trailing Trump significantly in 2024 Republican presidential primary polls. Real Clear Politics has Trump leading Haley, on average, by nearly 50 percentage points. This puts Haley in fourth place behind Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), and former Vice President Mike Pence.

Michael Haley's deployment means that he will miss most of his wife's campaign.

CNN reports:

A person familiar with the deployment details told CNN that Michael Haley will likely remain deployed through the spring of 2024, which overlaps with much of the Republican primary nominating calendar.

"My rock"

A formal deployment ceremony was held at The Citadel at the Military College of South Carolina on Saturday.

Haley attended along with Michael and Nikki Haley's children, Nalin and Rena.

After the ceremony, Nikki Haley, referring to her husband, said, "He’s always been my rock."

She continued:

We have both lived a life of service, and so, when he goes off to deploy, my support is completely with him. If I happen to be running for president, his support is completely with me. ... We will continue to stay in touch as best we can.

According to CNN, this is not Haley's first deployment. Per the outlet:

This will be his second active-duty deployment overseas – he previously served in Afghanistan as part of the South Carolina Army National Guard in 2013 when his wife was serving as the state’s governor.