Former RNC Chair Dumps Trump

Michael Steele said he was “damn near puking during the debates.”
Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele in 2011. He reportedly has said he won't vote for 2016 GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.
Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele in 2011. He reportedly has said he won't vote for 2016 GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.
Jonathan Ernst / Reuters

The former head of the Republican Party won’t be voting for Donald Trump in November, BuzzFeed reports.

Michael Steele, who chaired the party from 2009 to 2011, said at an event this week that he was “damn near puking during the debates,” according to the publication. Steele added that he also wouldn’t vote for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

The former chairman is the latest high-profile conservative to disavow Trump. After giving the GOP nominee’s racist and sexist comments a pass for almost his entire campaign, a slew of Republican leaders abandoned ship this month amid growing accusations of sexual assault.

Among those disavowing Trump are 2008 GOP nominee Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.). Some, including GOP mega-fundraiser Meg Whitman and (reportedly) former President George H.W. Bush, are voting for Clinton instead.

The party’s current leadership ― Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan ― are still backing Trump, though.

CORRECTION: This article previously referred to Sen. John McCain as the 2012 GOP nominee. He was the party’s nominee in 2008.

Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularlyincitespolitical violence and is a

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