Scoop: Former GOP Rep. Charlie Dent voted for Kamala Harris
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Rep. Charlie Dent, R-Pa., leaves a meeting of the GOP Conference at the Capitol Hill Club on April 17, 2018. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call
Former Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.) revealed he voted for Vice President Kamala Harris and blasted former President Trump in a statement first shared with Axios.
Why it matters: Dent is part of a growing army of Republican former members of Congress who have thrown their weight behind Harris rather than Trump.
- Some are going as far as to actively campaign for Harris, with former Reps. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) and Barbara Comstock (R-Va.) appearing with the vice president at a rally in the key battleground of Pennsylvania on Wednesday.
- "[Harris] and I will not agree on every issue, but in her, we have a capable leader who will always put the interests of our country before her own, unlike her opponent who will always put his personal interests ahead of those of the United States," Dent said.
Driving the news: Dent, who endorsed President Biden over Trump in 2020, said Thursday that he cast his absentee ballot for Harris in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
- Dent offered a searing rebuke of Trump, saying that his "affection for autocrats like Vladimir Putin and Kim Jung Un, his hostility toward the free press, our allies, and anyone who dares to disagree with him are reprehensible."
- "We have the opportunity – and solemn responsibility – to finally turn the page on the dark politics Trump has ushered in and elect a decent, honorable leader for President," Dent continued.
The big picture: The Harris campaign continues to ramp up its outreach to Republican and independent voters to appeal to this key bloc that could decide the election.
- Harris on Wednesday campaigned in Bucks County, Pa., where she was joined by more than 100 Republicans. Earlier this month, the VP appeared at an event in Ripon, Wisconsin, the birthplace of the GOP, with former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.).
- Harris on Wednesday also participated in an interview on Fox News in a direct effort to court the still persuadable GOP-leaning voters ahead of Nov. 5.
Between the lines: Dent in his statement urged Harris to continue to "embrace .. the political center" and reject the "inevitable pressure from extreme elements within her own party."
- "It's long past time for a new and better political discourse," he added.
Zoom in: Dent represented Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley in Congress from 2005 to 2018, serving as the chair of the House Ethics Committee and the co-chair of the centrist Tuesday Group.
- A Trump critic while in the House, Dent resigned from Congress in 2018.
- He endorsed Biden over Trump in 2020, joining scores of other Republican former lawmakers and administration officials in doing so.
Go deeper: The anti-Trump Republicans backing Harris' 2024 campaign
