Former Rep. Denver Riggleman (R-Va.) on Sunday endorsed Vice President Harris’ presidential bid, warning that returning former President Trump to the White House “would put the American people at risk and spark global chaos.”
Riggleman’s name was included among a list of high-profile supporters released by the Harris campaign in conjunction with the launch of the “Republicans for Harris” initiative.
“I’m here, I am,” Riggleman said in a post on social platform X that included a press release from “Republicans Supporting Harris.”
Riggleman explained his reasoning for supporting Trump by pointing to the events of January 6, 2021, when a mob of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol. Riggleman had been endorsed by Trump on two separate election campaigns, but ended his endorsement with the former president on January 6.
“I’ve seen the data on J6. Trump and his minions are dangerous. The same people who pushed J6 are pushing Project 2025,” Riggleman said. “A second term for Trump would put the American people at risk and spark global chaos.”
“Sanity should be the standard. Criminals should be looked down upon,” he added, slamming Republicans on the HarrisX account.
The Harris campaign launched the effort with the support of more than 25 prominent Republicans, including former Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, as well as other GOP lawmakers and governors.
Stephanie Grisham, the White House press secretary during the Trump administration, and Olivia Troye, a former national security adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence, also endorsed Harris.
Former Reps. Christopher Shays (R-Connecticut), Joe Walsh (R-Illinois), Susan Molinari (R-New York) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Illinois) also were on the list of supporters.
Harris’ Republican allies will focus on galvanizing Republican voices and “talking to friends and family about the importance of voting for the vice president,” the campaign said, describing the group as a “campaign within a campaign.” The group is scheduled to hold kickoff events on Monday in the battleground states of Arizona, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
“Donald Trump’s MAGA extremism is harmful to millions of Republicans who no longer believe that the party of Donald Trump represents their values and will vote against him again in November,” Austin Weatherford, Harris’ national director of Republican outreach, said in a statement.
