Seventeen former staff members of late Republican President Ronald Reagan are endorsing the Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris. They believe that Reagan, if alive, would have supported Harris and have stated that their votes in this election are less about supporting the Democratic Party and more about supporting democracy. Over 230 former officials for Republican presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush have also backed Harris, as well as campaign staffers for Republican presidential nominees John McCain and Mitt Romney. This level of GOP support for Harris is similar to the support President Biden received in his 2020 run against Trump.
The list of former Reagan staff members endorsing Harris includes prominent individuals such as Ken Adelman, who served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and U.S. arms control director under Reagan, and B. Jay Cooper, who was a special assistant and deputy press secretary to Reagan. The group is seeking to convince other former Reagan staffers to support the Harris-Walz ticket, viewing it as the best path forward for a strong and viable America for future generations. The Trump campaign has not yet responded to these endorsements, and Trump has received support from only a few Democratic officials who have distanced themselves from the party.
The backing of Harris by the former Reagan staffers comes amid a wave of endorsements from Republican officials, including those who served in Trump’s first term, as well as former Vice President Dick Cheney and his daughter, former Congresswoman Liz Cheney. The Harris campaign is working to draw support away from Trump in battleground states, where polling indicates a tight race. The endorsements reflect a choice between truth and lies, freedom and suppression of freedoms, and serving the people versus serving the few, according to the group of Reagan White House staffers.
In April 2021, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California launched a speaker series featuring several Republican presidential candidates who later ran against Trump in the 2024 Republican primary. The library did not invite Trump to speak, citing his status as a former president and a desire to feature speakers who have not held that level of office. The new endorsements for Harris are part of a broader effort to shift support away from Trump and towards the Democratic ticket in the upcoming election. Former Republican officials who have spoken out against Trump have emphasized the importance of this moment in choosing between integrity and demagoguery.
