Former Hawaii Congresswoman and 2020 presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard has become the second ex-Democrat to endorse Donald Trump in as many weeks.
The former Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee endorsed the Republican nominee at a National Guard conference in Detroit, MI. Her decision comes just days after Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspended his campaign to also back the former president.
Kennedy noted on Sunday that there will be more Democratic endorsements of Trump to come, noting that “Trump is going to make a series of announcements about other Democrats who are joining his campaign.” Elon Musk, who had historically supported Democrats had first endorsed Trump following the assassination attempt on the former president last month.
Gabbard, a National Guard veteran herself, acknowledged the “grave responsibility that a president and commander in chief bears for every single one of our lives” on Monday, August 26. She slammed the Democratic White House for bringing the United States into a situation where it is “facing multiple wars on multiple fronts in regions around the world and closer to the brink of nuclear war than we ever have been before.”
Gabbard’s endorsement of Trump is perhaps not unexpected. She was previously one the Democratic Party’s most conservative lawmakers, and refused to vote in favor of impeaching the then-president in 2019.
Despite running for the Democratic ticket in 2020, Gabbard left the party two years later amid concerns over wokeness within Democratic ranks. She has since identified as independent.
Her decision marks yet another blow for a Democratic Party whose critics argue has become too far left. While ex-Democrats line up to support the former president, the same can’t be said for Kamala Harris who has done little to attract anti-Trump conservatives.
Gabbard’s support also signals a show of unity behind Trump.
