A former Republican congressman told supporters that voting for Kamala Harris is the “Conservative choice” this election.
Speaking at a Harris event in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Adam Kinzinger, a House Representative for Illinois from 2011 until 2023, urged the crowd to “make the conservative choice. Vote for our bedrock values. Vote for Kamala Harris.”
The event, which occurred on October 16, was filled with former GOP members and former Trump voters who are changing their vote this election in order to vote for Harris, CBS reported.
Kinzinger has been an outspoken “Never Trump” Republican since the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2020. He founded a group called Country First which, according to its website, works to “elect reasonable individuals who prioritize the nation’s well-being over party agendas, paving the way for bipartisan, durable solutions at all levels of governance.”
Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger speaking during a campaign event for Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, October 16, 2024 in Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania. Kinzinger told rally attendees that voting for Harris is the ‘Conservative choice’ this election.
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Kinzinger has been an active Harris backer this election, appearing on CNN and Real Time with Bill Maher, as well as posting videos of his conversations with politicians such as Colin Allred and Brad Raffensperger, to his Country First YouTube page.
During his speech, he said he had taken stands that “have put me on the outside of the party” but said he believes that Trump does not share “long-held Republican values.”
“What gives me hope is that there is a candidate who does hold those values. You know, I know that Kamala Harris shares my allegiance to the rule of law, to the constitution, and to democracy. Whatever policies we disagree on pale in comparison to those fundamental matters of principle,” he said.
Newsweek has contacted the Trump campaign via email for comment.
Another former GOP congressman, Jim Greenwood, who served in Pennsylvania’s 8th district from 1993-2005, was also at the Bucks County event, and told NBC10, “I agree with her on some policies and I disagree with her on some policies.
“What I say is look, after this election, there’s going to be lots of Republicans in Congress, the Senate may well go Republican. The house is 50/50. So, she’s going to have to govern across the aisle and do bipartisan work and come up with compromises that are good for the country.”
Another prominent Republican who has said he will not vote for Trump is former national security advisor John Bolton.
Bolton told Newsweek that he will not vote for Harris, but will write in someone else’s name as a protest vote in the 2024 election.
Kamala Harris greeting supporters after speaking at a campaign event, October 16, 2024 in Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania. Harris was joined by several former GOP lawmakers who are now supporting Harris.
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Harris has made successful gains with conservatives in Pennsylvania. A New York Times/Siena College/Philadelphia Inquirer poll, which surveyed 857 likely voters from October 7 to 10 with a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points, found that Harris is winning 12 percent of Pennsylvania Republicans.
However, Democrats in the state are also switching sides, state-released voting data shows.
The Democratic Party of Pennsylvania and the Harris Campaign have been emailed outside of working hours for comment.
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