Citing dissatisfaction over the Left’s stance on war, immigration, gender ideology, and more, several prominent Democrats made waves for defying their party about President-elect Donald Trump during a political cycle like none other.

Here’s a rundown of 11 of them.

The mayors

The progressive Muslim mayor of Hamtramck, Michigan, announced in September he was endorsing Trump, citing a belief the former president could end the war in Gaza. A Yemeni immigrant, Mayor Amer Ghalib was a member of the pro-Palestinian Uncommitted movement and was disgruntled that Vice President Kamala Harris never differentiated herself from President Joe Biden’s Middle Eastern policy. Ghalib’s move signaled an alarm sign that Arab support for Harris was on the decline in Michigan, which ultimately proved to be true.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams also made waves for his friendly overtures to the GOP this year after often clashing with the president-elect during his first term in the White House. The Democratic New Yorker has lambasted the Biden administration over its border policies and signaled in November readiness to work with Trump on targeting illegal immigration.

The bromance reached its peak in December after Adams indicated Trump was a “great patriot,” and the president-elect left the door to pardoning the mayor after he was criminally indicted in September. Adams has also compared the New York indictment leveled at Trump to the one brought against himself, suggesting that both were politically weaponized by Biden’s Justice Department.

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson didn’t just make overtures to Republicans. As the leader of one of the country’s largest cities, Johnson announced in Sept. 2023 that he was leaving the Democratic Party, citing disillusionment about its’ stance on crime, urban policies, and economic opportunity. He went on to formally endorse Trump at the Republican National Convention in July. 

The bros

Elon Musk was, at one time, a devout Democrat who waited in line for hours to shake former President Barack Obama’s hand. However, the SpaceX CEO has shifted to the Right in recent years, particularly expressing anger with progressive ideology after one of his children underwent a transgender operation.

But it wasn’t until the first assassination attempt against Trump in July that Musk took the final plunge, saying he was captured by the bravery the president-elect showed in the face of fire. As images of a bloodied Trump pumping his fist in the air took over the internet, Musk publicly endorsed Trump, later saying he wanted “someone who is strong and courageous to represent the country.”

The tech titan subsequently became one of the most important players in Trumpworld as one of the former president’s biggest campaign surrogates in Pennsylvania, which is considered essential to win in order to secure the White House. Now he’s co-leading Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency, and recently even flexed his power to help topple a critical government spending bill. 

Rogan, who has said he always voted Democrat in 2020, had Trump on his popular podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, just weeks before the election. Rogan’s show holds a massive audience and ranks likely as one of the most influential podcasts in the United States. He’s not a political pundit either, making his platform relatable to a swath of voters.

Trump’s appearance on the show became one of the biggest media hits of the year, outperforming cable television networks’ prime-time ratings, and drawing more viewers even than the president-elect debate with Harris. The podcast with Trump proved to be a turning point with Rogan too, as he endorsed the president-elect on election eve, just days after the two men sat down.

The senators

Sens. John Fetterman (D-PA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and Joe Manchin (I-WV) have all had harsh words for Trump in recent years. Fetterman and Sanders even backed Harris for the presidency this election cycle.

However, each of them has shown strong streaks of contrarianism in delineating from establishment Democrats’ distaste for Trumpworld. 

During the 2024 campaign season, Fetterman was an often lonely voice warning colleagues not to underestimate support for Trump in his home state. He has frequently pushed Democrats to engage with Trump supporters and the working class, criticizing the Harris campaign for turning down an appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience, a move he said showed disdain for male voters.

In the days since the Nov. 5 election, the Pennsylvania senator has also emerged as a key supporter of several of Trump’s Cabinet picks and even joined the president-elect’s social media platform, Truth Social. In his first post on the platform, Fetterman denounced the historic New York hush money indictment against Trump and said he should be pardoned. 

Sanders, who caucuses with Democrats, similarly backed one of Trump’s more high-profile Cabinet nominations to head the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. With Kennedy facing a potentially tough Senate confirmation vote, Sanders’ support in the upper chamber could be crucial to helping the Trump team get his name through.

In addition, the progressive Vermont senator has expressed support for Musk as he leads the incoming Trump administration’s new Department of Government Efficiency, citing its goal of reducing waste in the Pentagon’s budget. Perhaps most notably, Sanders gained attention for his comments after Harris lost the election that blamed the defeat on Democratic elites he said had “abandoned working-class people.”

Meanwhile, Manchin sent ripples through Washington when he left the Democratic Party in May, after clashing with the Biden administration over energy policy for several years. Earlier this month the senator made headlines for suggesting Biden should pardon Trump of all the crimes he has been accused of. He also gave the incoming administration a key opening on the National Labor Relations Board when he blocked the nomination of Chairwoman Lauren McFerran. 

The Cabinet picks

Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are both ex-Democrats turned Trump supporters tapped to serve in the president-elect’s Cabinet. Gabbard will likely serve in the incoming administration as the Director of National Intelligence. If confirmed by the Senate, Kennedy will lead the Department of Health and Human Services.

Gabbard, an Army veteran, initially gained prominence as a Democratic congresswoman. Citing discontent with “elites” in the party and the Democratic establishment’s approach to free speech, and war, among other issues, Gabbard became a critical surrogate for Trump on the campaign trail.  Gabbard made the final leap standing by Trump’s side during a late October rally, announcing she was joining the Republican Party by citing “the leadership that President Trump has brought to transform the Republican Party and bring it back to the party of the people and the party of peace.” 

Kennedy is similarly a lifelong Democrat who exited the party of his youth to become an independent last fall. Hailing from a powerful Democratic political dynasty, the Kennedy scion challenged both Trump and Biden for the presidency, only to drop out over the summer.

At the time, he stunned Democrats once again by endorsing Trump, his onetime rival, for the presidency, saying Trump had promised to target the chronic disease epidemic. The president-elect has so far kept his promise, keeping Kennedy close by his side on the campaign trail, and nominating the former Democrat to a top cabinet health position following his victory.

The governor

Gov. Jared Polis (D-CO) was one of the Democratic governors who prominently ganged up on Trump after he won a second term in November. He announced he was co-chairing the ​​Governors Safeguarding Democracy initiative to address “emerging threats” just days after Trump’s victory. 

That made it all the more shocking when the Colorado governor threw his weight behind Kennedy, one of Trump’s more controversial Cabinet nominees. 

Although Democrats in particular have targeted Kennedy over the past year for his positions on vaccines, Polis broke with his colleagues to energetically pitch for the HHS nominee. 

“He helped us defeat vaccine mandates in Colorado in 2019 and will help make America healthy again by shaking up HHS and FDA. I hope he leans into personal choice on vaccines rather than bans (which I think are terrible, just like mandates) but what I’m most optimistic about is taking on big pharma and the corporate ag oligopoly to improve our health,” Polis wrote.