Robbie Smither, a Kentucky conservative and former Republican candidate for local office, vowed to vote for a Democrat “for the first time,” prompting former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) to beg him to reconsider.
“When I vote for a Democrat, [Florida gubernatorial candidate David Jolly], for the first time in my 41 years of life this November, it will not be because my values have changed, but because my party has abandoned our values for the sycophancy of a transactional leader who has none,” Smither wrote in a social media post on X Tuesday.
Smither also said, despite a previous commitment to vote for GOP congressional nominee Mike Beltran, that he may vote for Beltran’s Democratic opponent, Kathy Castor.
“Why? Because Mike, for whatever reason, has made [President Donald Trump] his identity in this race instead of the principled conservative independence that set him apart in Tallahassee,” Smither wrote.
Smither’s pivot sparked an immediate response from several MAGA influencers and figures, including Gaetz, who issued Smither a desperate plea.
“Bro we need your vote,” Gaetz wrote in response. “I hate the war too. But the Democrats want to trans your kids.”
Phillip Buchanan, a prominent MAGA influencer who goes by the online pseudonym “Catturd,” responded to Smither with a modified slur referencing people with intellectual disabilities. Not everyone piled on, however.
Derrick Evans, a former West Virginia state House lawmaker, devout Trump supporter and Jan. 6 Capitol rioter, said he understood Smither’s shift even though rising fuel costs weren’t enough to push him toward the Democrats himself.
“I’m upset about the fuel prices but I will NOT vote for a Democrat,” Evans wrote in a social media post on X. “But people have been getting upset with me when I say that other people will vote Democrat because of it.”
When I vote for a Democrat, @DavidJollyFL, for the first time in my 41 years of life this November, it will not be because my values have changed, but because my party has abandoned our values for the sycophancy of a transactional leader who has none. I made a personal… pic.twitter.com/ebe2G2DJOg — Robbie G. Smither (@rgsmither) September 22, 2026
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