Jimmy McCain registers as a Democrat and endorses Kamala Harris

Jimmy McCain, the 36-year-old son of the late Arizona Sen. John McCain, announced this week that he has registered as a Democrat for the 2024 election and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris.

Jimmy McCain left the Republican Party in 2016, after former President Donald Trump became the party's nominee, and was registered as an Independent until this week. The McCain family has had a tumultuous relationship with Trump because of the former president's comments about the late senator's military service and John McCain's wife Cindy McCain endorsed President Joe Biden in 2020.

Trump previously claimed that John McCain was only a "war hero because he was captured," by the enemy and became a prisoner of war. "I like people who weren't captured," Trump added.

Jimmy McCain, who has served in the military for 17 years, said his decision to switch parties came during a nine month deployment overseas, which just ended. His decision was further sparked by Trump's actions at Arlington National Cemetery last week, where he appeared alongside the family members of the service members who died in the Abbey Gate explosion in Afghanistan.

“It just blows me away,” McCain told CNN in an article published Tuesday. "I think that for anyone who’s done a lot of time in their uniform, they just understand that inherently — that it’s not about you there. It’s about these people who gave the ultimate sacrifice in the name of their country.”

Jimmy McCain said he is politically more of a moderate, and that he is a man who "cares about his country more than anything," according to the Associated Press. He did not include a statement on his endorsement of Harris, but said he was planning to vote for her in November. 

Jimmy McCain's sister, Meghan McCain, has not endorsed Harris so far, but has also been critical of Trump. Meghan McCain said she is still a "lifelong, generational conservative." 

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.