Former Republican Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake filmed a campaign ad for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, insisting the United States “will be better” if President Donald Trump is defeated.
“I’ve been a conservative Republican my entire life,” Flake said in the ad released Wednesday. “I’ve never before voted for a Democrat for president, but this year, principle and conscience require me to do just that. I’m voting for Joe Biden.”
WATCH:
.@JeffFlake helping @JoeBiden + @KamalaHarris bring it home in Arizona with a new GOTV ad —> pic.twitter.com/HO1zWcI7DM
— Geoff Burgan (@GeoffBurgan) October 28, 2020
“Who will best restore decency and civility to the White House?” Flake continued. “Who can I be proud to tell my children and grandchildren I voted for?”
The former Republican senator then referred to his various clashes with Trump.
“My fellow Republicans, it’s not easy going against the head of our party. Believe me, I know,” he said. “But I also know that character, moral leadership, and integrity are values that we cannot put aside when we cast our vote for president. If we hold onto these values, our country will be better for it, and so will our party.”
Responding to critics who call voting for Biden “not being conservative,” Flake insisted the “most conservative thing you can do is to put country over party.” (RELATED: ‘Anti-Choice Extremist’: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Attacks Kasich For Saying She Doesn’t Represent Democratic Party)
Flake, who served in the U.S. Senate from 2013 to 2019 and has been a frequent critic of the president, formally endorsed Biden in August, citing Trump’s “behavior” as a primary factor.
“It is apparent how the president’s behavior has not and will not change,” he said in August. “Some of my conservative friends will say, ‘Yes, we don’t like his behavior but he governs as a conservative.’ Here, today, I will say to my fellow conservatives … indifference to the truth or to the careful stewardship of the institutions of American liberty is not conservative.”
More than two dozen other Republicans or former Republicans, including former Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich and former Secretary of State Colin Powell, have also endorsed Biden.
Kasich and Flake are reportedly being vetted by the Biden campaign for potential cabinet positions should the former vice president win the presidency.