Liz Cheney says she is voting for Harris for president

(CNN) — Republican former Rep. Liz Cheney will vote for Vice President Kamala Harris in November, she said during remarks at Duke University, according to audio obtained by CNN.

The former Wyoming congresswoman noted the importance of voting for Harris in states like North Carolina, where she appeared on Wednesday.

“I think it is crucially important for people to recognize, not only is what I just said about the danger that Trump poses something that should prevent people from voting for him, but I don’t believe that we have the luxury of writing in candidates’ names, particularly in swing states,” Cheney said.

She made the announcement in North Carolina specifically because it is a battleground state, according to a source close to Cheney.

“And as a conservative, as someone who believes in and cares about the Constitution, I have thought deeply about this, and because of the danger that Donald Trump poses, not only am I not voting for Donald Trump, but I will be voting for Kamala Harris,” she continued.

The Harris campaign highlighted Cheney’s endorsement Wednesday night and pointed to other Republicans who have backed her, including former Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger and former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan.

“The Vice President is proud to have earned Congresswoman Cheney’s vote. She is a patriot who loves this country and puts our democracy and our Constitution first,” campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon said in a statement.

Cheney, who is the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney and a vocal critic of Trump, previously told CNN she is committed to doing what’s necessary to stop the former president from returning to the White House.

Cheney’s outspokenness against Trump and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election — including her vote to impeach him — eventually cost her her post in House Republican leadership. The House GOP ousted her as conference chair, replacing her with a top Trump defender, several months after the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

She went on to serve as vice chair of the House select committee that investigated the insurrection, ultimately losing her seat in Congress in a 2022 primary to a Trump-backed challenger.

Cheney tried to counteract Trump’s influence in the 2022 midterms by opposing candidates who repeated his falsehoods about the 2020 election being stolen. The political action committee she started placed an ad buy urging Arizona voters to reject GOP gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake and Republican Secretary of State nominee Mark Finchem. She also crossed party lines to stump for two moderate Democrats in competitive House races that year.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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