Ex-Trump officials, prominent Republicans back Harris for president in new initative

Aug. 5 (UPI) -- More than 25 Republicans have gone against their party and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president.

Unveiled Sunday by Harris' campaign, the Republicans for Harris initiative boasts endorsements from prominent Republicans, including those who were on the staff of former President Donald Trump , whom Harris, as the presumptive Democratic nominee, is expected to face in the race to the White House this November.

The announcement comes a day before this campaign effort is to hold its kickoff events in Arizona, North Carolina and Pennsylvania as Republicans for Harris seeks to reach GOP voters who "continue to reject the chaos, division and violence of Donald Trump and his Project 2025 agenda," the Harris campaign said in a statement emailed to UPI, referring to the nearly 1,000-word policy document created by the conservative Heritage Foundation think tank.

"Donald Trump belongs nowhere near the White House," Bill Weld, former Republican governor of Massachusetts, said in a statement. "With democracy hanging in the balance in this election, I'm standing with Kamala Harris to defeat Donald Trump and his attacks on our democratic institutions."

Joe Walsh, a former 2020 GOP presidential candidate and former House representative for Illinois, is also among those Republicans who endorsed Harris. He said on X that 14 years after he was first elected to Congress as a conservative his party has become "an authoritarian-embracing cult."

In a second post on X, Walsh said he had a recent conversation with a 25-year-old Trump supporter who couldn't believe he was supporting Harris. He explained his reason for doing so is that if Harris loses the election, she'll accept the results and concede while he does not think Trump will do the same.

"If Trump loses, he won't accept the will of the people. Just like he didn't in 2020," he said. "I told the 25yr old Trump supporter that a candidate who refuses to accept the will of the people is a traitor. And I could never support a traitor."

Other Republican endorsements come from former Trump White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham , former Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and former GOP state chair for Washington Chris Vance, who has since left the party to become an independent, among others.

"I was a Republican for 37 years, serving as a lawmaker and as chairman of the state party. Now, I'm proud to support VP Harris because she is better than Trump on national security, better on the economy and unlike Trump, she will stand with the Constitution and the rule of law," Vance said on X.