The mayor of an Arizona city wrote in an op-ed for Arizona Central on Monday that he is fully behind Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential bid.
John Giles, the mayor of Mesa, Arizona, has been a vocal supporter of President Joe Biden. In a post to X this month, he cheered Biden for his “leadership, bipartisanship and dedication to this country.”
In his op-ed, the mayor explained Harris represents much of what Republicans are looking for.
“The time has come for my fellow Arizona Republicans to return to the core foundations of the Grand Old Party,” Giles wrote. “Our party used to stand for the belief that every Arizonan, no matter their background or circumstances, should have the freedom, opportunity and security to live out their American Dream. But since Donald Trump refused to accept the outcome of the 2020 election, Republicans have yet to course correct.”
The mayor believes former President Donald Trump is leading the Republican Party toward extremism. Trump, he said, would prove harmful to Arizona cities if reelected in November.
“Under Trump, American cities didn’t get the support they deserved,” he wrote. “Infrastructure week was made into a joke. But under the Biden-Harris administration, Mesa has seen historic federal funding for the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, along with investments to make sure our streets and public transit systems benefit from modern technology.”
While Trump and his running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, rely on “crudeness and vulgarity,” Harris is the “competent leader we need,” Giles claimed.
“That’s why I’m standing with her,” Giles wrote. “Kamala Harris is the competent, just and fair leader our country deserves. This year too much is at stake to vote Republican at the top of the ticket.”
