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George H.W. Bush to vote for Hillary Clinton

The former president joins a growing list of Republicans who are turning their backs on Donald Trump. 

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REUTERS/Mike Stone
Former U.S. President George H.W. Bush raises hands with his wife, former first lady Barbara Bush as they await the start of the Republican U.S. Presidential candidates debate sponsored by CNN in Houston, Texas, February 25, 2016.
  • By Staff Associated Press

A prominent member of the Kennedy family says former Republican President George H.W. Bush told her that he plans to vote for Democrat Hillary Clinton for president this fall.

The former president joins a growing list of Republicans who are turning their backs on Trump. 

Former Maryland Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend posted a picture of herself with Mr. Bush on Facebook Monday and added, "The President told me he's voting for Hillary!!" Townsend later confirmed the conversation she had while meeting Bush in Maine to Politico, which shared a screengrab of the Facebook post.

Asked about Townsend’s post, George H.W. Bush spokesman Jim McGrath in an email replied, "The vote President Bush will cast as a private citizen in some 50 days will be just that: a private vote cast in some 50 days. He is not commenting on the presidential race in the interim."

George H.W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush have stayed out of the political debate since campaigning earlier this year for their son Jeb's unsuccessful bid for president. Neither George H.W. Bush nor his son, former President George W. Bush, attended this summer's Republican National Convention in Cleveland where Trump accepted the nomination.

Bush's spokesman, Jim McGrath, says in a statement that the 92-year-old former president's vote is private and Bush isn't commenting on the race. McGrath later said on Twitter that he's "still checking" if anyone was there to verify Townsend's conversation.

Bush hasn't offered support for GOP nominee Donald Trump, who defeated his son, Jeb Bush, in a testy Republican primary season.

Politico also reported:

Asked about Townsend’s post, George H.W. Bush spokesman Jim McGrath in an email replied, "The vote President Bush will cast as a private citizen in some 50 days will be just that: a private vote cast in some 50 days. He is not commenting on the presidential race in the interim."

George H.W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush have stayed out of the political debate since campaigning earlier this year for their son Jeb's unsuccessful bid for president. Neither George H.W. Bush nor his son, former President George W. Bush, attended this summer's Republican National Convention in Cleveland where Trump accepted the nomination.

In August, Rosario Marín, former U.S. Treasurer under President George W. Bush, joined a growing list of Republicans who are voting for Clinton. In an opinion piece for Univision, she wrote:

“I have been a delegate to the previous five Republican conventions. But since July 2015, when a certain candidate, upon entering the political arena, showed his contempt for Mexican immigrants by stating they were drug dealers, rapists and murderers, I have voiced my disgust and have warned one and all of the perilous threat he was to our party, our nation and the world.” Marín concluded, “My party and its standard bearer leave me no choice; on November 8, I will vote for Hillary Clinton.”

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