Former President Donald Trump recently appointed Robert F. Kennedy Junior and former Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard to his transition team. This move comes a few days after the two former Democrats endorsed Trump’s 2024 presidential bid.

Gabbard previously ran for the Democratic presidency in 2020, prior to her exit from the Democratic Party. Kennedy ran under the Democratic banner in this election cycle, but subsequently ran as an independent before bowing out of the race and endorsing Trump. 

The Trump campaign later announced that Gabbard and Kennedy would be serving as honorary transition team co-chairs, in addition to Trump’s sons and running mate JD Vance.

Presidential transition teams hit the ground running when a candidate is elected president. They assist in the selection of political appointees and set the tone on public policymaking for the incoming administration.

Trump senior advisor Brian Hughes stated that the endorsements of the two former Democrats demonstrate how the campaign was gaining support “across partisan lines”. 

“We look forward to having their powerful voices on the team as we work to restore America’s greatness,” he said in a statement.

Gabbard represented Hawaii in Congress from 2013 to 2021, and left the Democratic Party in 2022, citing its radical turn towards wokism and hardline tyrannical policies on liberties such as gun ownership. 

Gabbard had a track record of bucking her party on issues dealing with foreign policy and immigration. Ever since she retired from Congress, Gabbard has taken on more of a contrarian role as a gadfly that criticizes the Democratic Party for its descent into petty despotism.

Kennedy ended his independent presidential bid on August 23 and endorsed Trump, as he appeared next to him at a rally in Arizona to back the former president’s re-election bid. 

Gabbard and RFK Jr. are solid additions to the campaign. They represent a shift in the electorate, where Democrats of yesteryear are completely disenchanted with the present iteration of the Democratic Party.

There are plenty of these Democratic voters in the Midwest and key battleground states such as Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin who have grown weary of the two-party system. These are the kinds of voters that could be activated by the America First movement. The best way to do that is by advocating for immigration restriction, economic nationalism, and fervently opposing anti-white policies