Jerushah Duford — the granddaughter of the late Rev. Billy Graham, the famed Christian evangelist — will not be voting for Donald Trump.
After recently endorsing Democrat Kamala Harris for president in Newsweek, Duford appeared on CNN to further explain her reasoning, saying on Wednesday that Trump has failed to represent “basic principles of our faith.”
“The fact, the reality that my opinion here is unique is shocking and heartbreaking,” said Duford, a licensed therapist who similarly spoke out against the Republican in 2020.
She suggested that traits like “kindness” and “gentleness” were absent from Trump’s Sunday rally in New York City, which made headlines for offensive comments from speakers such as comedian Tony Hinchcliff, who referred to Puerto Rico as “a floating island of garbage.” Many observers decried the dig at the U.S. territory, with Trump’s campaign also distancing itself from the remark.
Duford argued that Trump “has shown since 2016” that he doesn’t embody the “basic tenets of our faith,” adding, “The fact that I even have to say these things is discouraging.”
When CNN anchor Kasie Hunt asked how the Harris campaign might address those in her religious community, Duford said, “I’m not sure a lot of them are listening.”
She added, “The people that I speak to talk about just a little bit of a tug in their spirit, that ‘the church leaders that I’ve been following for decades are telling me to vote for this man, but I’m reading scripture and I’m saying this doesn’t really line up.’”
As for abortion — typically a major issue among evangelicals — Duford said that “for me, pro-life is womb to grave,” suggesting that the Trump camp instead supports “people being labeled as human garbage.”
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Duford — whose uncle Franklin Graham is a vocal Trump supporter — joins a number of prominent Republicans who’ve endorsed Harris this year, including former Vice President Dick Cheney and his daughter, former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.).