Rep. Adam Kinzinger, one of the most prominent Republican critics of former President Donald Trump in Congress, is rolling out a bipartisan series of midterm endorsements Tuesday, including a handful of Democrats seeking to become their states’ top election officials.
Kinzinger (R-Ill.) endorsed four Democratic secretary of state candidates: incumbents Steve Simon of Minnesota and Jocelyn Benson of Michigan, along with Arizona’s Adrian Fontes and Nevada’s Cisco Aguilar, both of whom are running for open seats. Kinzinger’s endorsements, shared first with POLITICO, also include Democrat Josh Shapiro’s campaign for governor of Pennsylvania, where he would appoint the secretary of state if he wins.
In an interview, Kinzinger said he chose 2022 endorsements partly based on where there are “going to be positions that, frankly, can be bulwarks to defend against a real constitutional crisis in 2024.”
“A badly-placed, bad faith secretary of state can really throw the whole country into chaos,” he added.
Kinzinger also backed Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican who successfully fended off a Trump-backed primary challenger this year after refusing to help Trump overturn the 2020 election results.
