Former Republican Sen. Jeff Flake is endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris because of his conservative values — not in spite of them — he said Saturday in an interview announcing his support for the Democratic presidential nominee.
Flake, R-Ariz., is crossing party lines to endorse a Democrat for the second presidential election in a row. He backed President Joe Biden over former Republican President Donald Trump in 2020 and voted third-party rather than cast a ballot for Trump in 2016.
“I’m a conservative. I believe in the rule of law,” Flake said during an interview at The Nile Coffee Shop in Mesa on Saturday afternoon. “First and foremost, I want to support a presidential candidate that respects the rule of law, somebody who, if they lose an election, wouldn’t try to use the presidential powers to overturn that election.”
Flake made his endorsement just 37 days before Election Day, and it comes at a time when the vice president could use a boost in Arizona. Polls show Harris and Trump locked in a close battle for the White House, with Trump slightly ahead and leading on the issues that voters say they care about most.
“If you are a conservative, then you believe in the rule of law and you believe in limited government, economic freedom, individual responsibility, free trade. And I think that if you look at the two candidates, Kamala Harris represents more of those views than Donald Trump,” Flake said. “I don’t agree with everything that the Harris campaign has put out. That’s not necessary. I’ve never agreed with the entire platform of any Republican I voted for.”
Flake served with both Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, during his time in Washington, and said he learned the character of both candidates while he was there. Flake and Harris were on the Senate Judiciary Committee together, and Flake got to know Walz even earlier, when they served in the House.
Flake spoke to Walz a few days ago and had a “good discussion,” he noted.
The Republican diplomat has had a front-row seat to the escalating issues in the Middle East, and he named foreign policy as a top reason he’s backing Harris over Trump. Flake also pointed to tariffs and immigration as major sticking points.
“Her support for our allies abroad, that’s important to me. Recognition that tariffs actually would increase inflation and increase costs on U.S. consumers, that’s important. And her recognition that immigration reform is one, important and two, it needs to be bipartisan,” Flake said.
A day earlier, Harris delivered a border security speech in Arizona where she promised to go even further than Biden to curb illegal immigration. Harris visited the U.S.-Mexico border wall and participated in briefings with U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officials during her time in the state Friday.
Harris said the nation’s immigration policies should be both “orderly” and “humane” during the remarks, and promised to crack down on people who cross the border illegally and pursue criminal charges against repeat offenders.
“I wasn’t surprised that she came out with a tougher policy than Joe Biden’s had,” Flake said. “And I welcome it. I think it’s the right thing to do.”
Flake has been a vocal Trump critic for the better half of a decade, slamming the former president’s political style, his penchant for tariffs and his views on immigration. He paid the price, facing sharp criticism from the former president and a Trump-aligned primary challenger in 2017.
“I’ve never supported Donald Trump. I didn’t in 2016. I didn’t in 2020. And there’s been no conduct over the past four years that would cause me to support him this time,” Flake said. “Kamala Harris, I served with her in the Senate. I know of her character.”
Flake opted not to run for reelection in 2018, saying, “There may not be a place for a Republican like me” in the new GOP. Four years later, the Arizona Republican Party censured him for endorsing Biden.
“At some point, Republicans get tired of losing,” Flake said, pointing to Democratic victories across the country and in Arizona over the last several years.
Since Flake left office, Democrats have taken both Senate seats, the Governor’s Office, the Secretary of State’s Office and the Attorney General’s Office in the state. Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego has the lead in this year’s Senate contest against Trump acolyte Kari Lake, a former local news anchor.
“This is a red state, and if you run as a traditional Republican, you can win in Arizona,” Flake said. “The problem is if you run as a MAGA Republican who denies that President Trump lost, you know, the last election, take his just, kind of smash-mouth politics, then you can’t win in Arizona — and that speaks well for the voters in Arizona.”
