High-profile Democrats and Republicans whose 2024 endorsements crossed party lines – Washington Examiner
The article discusses high-profile endorsements crossing party lines in the lead-up to the 2024 elections, emphasizing the current political climate of polarization. Notable figures like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard have switched their support to Donald Trump, with Kennedy, a former Democrat, suspending his presidential campaign to back Trump. Gabbard, also a former Democrat who has adopted more conservative views, plans to endorse Trump at a rally.
Conversely, supporters of Vice President Kamala Harris include former Trump White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, who criticized Trump and declared her support for Harris at the Democratic National Convention. Additionally, former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, who has voiced concerns about Trump’s actions during the 2020 election, also supports Harris. The article highlights how personal convictions are influencing endorsement decisions across party lines as candidates seek to broaden their appeal ahead of the elections.
High-profile Democrats and Republicans whose 2024 endorsements crossed party lines
In a time of hyperpolarization, party loyalty isn’t always breaking through as the No. 1 concern for a handful of people.
Both former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have the opportunity to expand their base with endorsements coming from former foes.
Here are some of the highest-profile people who have turned around on previous partisan politics to help the party on the other side of the aisle succeed in November.
Donald Trump’s supporters
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The third-party candidate, once dubbed as a spoiler, suspended his presidential campaign on Friday and is now fully behind Trump, including trying to roll out a definition of “MAGA” that could be appealing to Democrats.
A lifelong Democrat who turned independent for his campaign, Kennedy is the first high-profile former Democrat to give his blessing to Trump’s campaign.
Tulsi Gabbard
Former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who has since left the party after a presidential run in 2020, is expected to give her endorsement to Trump at his campaign rally in Detroit, according to CNN.
Gabbard left the Democratic Party in October 2022, saying she was no longer aligned with a party run by “elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness, who divide us by racializing every issue & stoke anti-white racism, actively work to undermine our God-given freedoms, are hostile to people of faith & spirituality, demonize the police and protect criminals at the expense of law-abiding Americans.”
She has since adopted a more conservative policy approach to border security, transgender issues, and foreign policy, and she has been assisting Trump with debate preparations.
Kamala Harris’s supporters
Former Trump White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham
Grisham served as the press secretary for the Trump administration until resigning hours after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. She took the stage at the Democratic National Convention and attacked her former boss, saying he “has no empathy, no morals, and no fidelity to the truth.”
“Kamala Harris tells the truth,” Grisham said. “She respects the American people, and she has my vote.”
Former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan
Duncan served as Georgia’s lieutenant governor from 2019 to 2023, and he had a front-row seat in the Georgia election interference case built against Trump. He also spoke at the DNC.
“My journey to this podium started years ago when I realized Donald Trump was willing to lie, cheat, and steal to overturn the 2020 election,” Duncan said.
Other GOP voices
Dozens of Republican lawmakers, governors, and former Cabinet members have denounced Trump and have run to the Democratic Party to support Harris, with some speaking at the DNC.
- Mesa, Arizona, Mayor John Giles
- Former Mike Pence adviser Olivia Troye
- Former Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel
- Former Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood
- Former Treasurer Rosario Marin
- Former GOP state chairman and state Sen. Chris Vance of Washington
- Reed Howard of Young Republicans for Harris
- Former Republican National Committee delegate Rina Shah
- Former New Hampshire Republican Party Chairwoman Jennifer Horn
- Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL)
- Former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar
- Former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld
- Former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman
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