Kamala Harris’ campaign is out with a new ad aimed at Republican voters in the battleground state of Arizona, in which the Republican mayor of Mesa says he is a “lifelong Republican” but has “always put country before party.”
“I know that Donald Trump’s second term would be all about himself. That’s why I, like so many other Republicans, cannot support Donald Trump. Kamala Harris and I may not agree on everything, but I know she will always put country first,” said Mayor John Giles, who also chairs the Arizona Republicans for Harris advisory committee.
The new spot, first shared with POLITICO, is part of the Harris campaign’s $370 million ad buy between Labor Day and Election Day and will air Monday on local broadcasts and networks in Arizona, including Fox News Channel, among other cable programs, according to the Harris campaign.
The ad featuring Mesa’s Republican mayor is part of the Harris campaign’s broader outreach to Republican voters in the state.
Last week, a Wall Street Journal poll showed that the race in Arizona is close, with 47 percent of voters backing Harris and 45 percent of voters backing Trump. But while Harris has the support of 96 percent of Democrats, Trump only has the support of 88 percent of Republican and Republican voters, according to the poll. Eight percent of Republicans surveyed said they would vote for Harris.
The Harris campaign is targeting similar voters in Pennsylvania, where it recently launched ads aimed at winning over Trump-wary Republican and independent voters. In one of the ads, lifelong Republicans Bob and Kristina Lange explain that “January 6 was a wake-up call.”
In August, the Harris campaign created a Republican for Harris-Walz advisory committee that focused on reaching disaffected Republican voters with extensions in battleground states like Arizona.
Last week, the vice president and her running mate, Gov. Tim Walz, campaigned with Giles and Jimmy McCain, the son of the late Sen. John McCain, who has ridiculed and attacked Trump but remains a major figure in a state that once home to the Republican political establishment.
During Harris’ trip to Arizona last week, she repeatedly praised John McCain and recalled serving in the Senate with him.
“John McCain stood on principle, he believed in the importance of patriotism, of sacrifice and what we stand for as a country,” Harris said.
Other prominent Republicans who have endorsed Harris include former Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona, former Rep. Liz Cheney and her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney.
Giles spoke at the Democratic National Convention and joined other Republicans on stage to support Harris, including former Illinois Congressman Adam Kinzinger, former Georgia Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan and former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham.
Harris has said she would like to put a Republican in a potential Cabinet, and on Friday she announced her plan to form a President’s Council on Bipartisan Solutions, made up of Republican and Democratic officials and business leaders to propose policy ideas command.
“We need a healthy two-party system, we need to have a healthy two-party system, we need to,” Harris said. “It is in the interest of all of us.”
