Georgia Republican Geoff Duncan to speak at DNC. Here's why he strongly opposes Donald Trump
Georgia Republican Geoff Duncan spoke Wednesday at the Democratic National Convention, a move he said was about being loyal to America before being loyal to party.
It was a sentiment he reflected earlier in the day on cable news.
"I'm here as an American," Duncan told CNN anchor Sara Sidner Wednesday in Chicago, site of the 2024 DNC. "I'm not here as a Republican, I'm not here as a Democrat. I'm here as an American that cares more about the future of this country than I care about the future of Donald Trump."
Despite being a proud member of the Republican party, Duncan has disagreed harshly with Trump, the Republican nominee, and his policies for several years. Here are some facts about Duncan, and why he has chosen to distance himself from Trump.
Who is Georgia Republican Geoff Duncan?
From 2019 to 2023, Duncan served as the 12th Lieutenant Governor of Georgia under Brian Kemp.
He served in the Georgia House of Representatives 26th district from 2012 until 2018 when he became Lieutenant Governor.
The 49-year-old Republican played baseball at Georgia Tech and reached as high as Triple-A in the Marlins organization before injuries ended his career.
He currently appears on CNN as a political commentator.
Why does Georgia Republican Geoff Duncan oppose Donald Trump?
Duncan has strongly criticized Donald Trump since the 2020 election after the former president repeatedly spread false claims about voter fraud in Georgia, and bashed Kemp and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger for not going along with the claim.
After Trump spoke at a rally in Georgia two weeks ago where he again bashed Kemp and Raffensperger, Duncan joined CNN to defend his colleagues.
"Brian Kemp has forgotten more about being a Republican than Donald Trump knows about being a Republican; Brad Raffensperger and myself included," Duncan said. "We have done more for the conservative cause than Donald Trump has ever done. This is now starting to not be Donald Trump's problem, this is starting to be the Republican Party's problem. We have to call him out for what he is. He's a felon (and) thug, who walks down the street and throws sucker punches at people like Brian Kemp, like African American journalists, like John McCain, and the list goes on-and-on-and-on again."
In Chicago on Wednesday, Duncan said that his family was threatened by Trump supporters after he, too, refused to go along with the claim of voter fraud.
After originally throwing his support behind Joe Biden, Duncan has strongly encouraged Republicans to vote for Kamala Harris after she became the front runner and then officially received the nomination Tuesday night during the second night of the DNC.
"I don't want Donald Trump to win, I want to get my party back and be able to build a GOP 2.0," Duncan told CNN's Jim Acosta. "The only way to do that is to let the Democrats win this election...It's also important to reinforce the fact to Republicans around the country that just because you vote for Kamala Harris in 2024 doesn't mean that you're a Democrat, it just means you're a patriot and you're doing your duty as an American to step up to the plate and reclaim this country's future."
Duncan is one of the few Republicans to speak out against Trump, but he will join Arizona Republican John Giles, who spoke at the DNC on Tuesday night, as another to push back against the 45th president.
He spoke on Wednesday during the third hour of the planned five-hour event that will have speakers Bill Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Pete Buttigieg and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz accepting the Vice Presidential nominee.