Not with him. Christopher Suprun, a Republican Electoral College member from Texas, explained in an interview with the Associated Press why he isn’t casting one of his state’s 38 electoral votes for President-elect Donald Trump.
“I am here to elect a president, not a king,” the Dallas-based paramedic told the AP on Tuesday, December 6.
Suprun previously said that he would support Trump, 70, and his future presidency, but he has since changed his mind given the ex–Celebrity Apprentice host’s attacks on the First Amendment and his promotion of brands and businesses overseas.
“I’m expecting backlash, but that has been par for the course this campaign. People are unhappy. They’re angry,” Suprun said. “But I’m angry too.”
While Suprun believes that the Electoral College “is fine as it currently exists,” he cannot stand behind the system’s 2016 winner. “I was told if we elected Donald Trump, he would transform his personality into being presidential. He isn’t,” the Texas resident explained. “I wanted him to be presidential, but since the election he hasn’t grown into our institution, he’s attacked them.”
Suprun and Texas’ other GOP Electoral College members previously signed a pledge that stated they would vote for their party’s nominee. However, that document was not legally binding. Though he is not voting for Trump, Suprun is also not casting an electoral ballot for the real estate tycoon’s Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. (Clinton, 69, lost the Texas electoral vote to Trump by nine points but is winning the popular vote by nearly 2.6 million votes as of December 6.)
“I am not sure of who I will vote for but would have to strongly consider someone like [Ohio Governor John] Kasich who has both executive and legislative experience bringing people together,” Suprun said. “I’m looking for someone we can all unify behind.”
Suprun isn’t the only elector who objects to Trump. Rather than participate in the vote, Texas Electoral College member Art Sisneros resigned from the organization last week. Electors across all states will cast their votes for the next POTUS Monday, December 19.
