Peach Tree Times

State Rep. Vernon Jones (D-DeKalb) announced on Twitter this week that he is supporting and endorsing President Trump for re-election. The move was not only unprecedented because Jones is a Democrat but also because he is African-American.

“Why wouldn’t a black man endorse Donald Trump,” Jones stated in a video. “Isn't he the president that ushered in the lowest unemployment rate among blacks before the pandemic crisis? Isn't he the president that signed the Criminal Justice Reform Act? And finally, isn't he the president that overwhelmingly supported financially historical black colleges and universities?”

Jones is referring to a bipartisan bill that Trump signed in 2019 that funnels more than $250 million a year to the nation’s historically black colleges and universities (HBCU), according to the Associated Press.

Jones added that he is a lifelong Democrat, a member of the Georgia House of Representatives and a graduate of North Carolina Central University, which is an HBCU in Durham.

“I didn't leave the Democratic Party,” he tweeted. “The Democratic Party left me.”

American National Election Studies found that more than 62 percent of black voters 50 and older identify strongly with the Democratic Party but that number is only 41 percent for black voters younger than 35, according to BlackPAC, an independently led voter advocacy group.

“I 100% endorse Donald J. Trump,” Jones said. “I want to call on every patriot, every great American,  across this country, regardless of your race or gender orientation, I want to ask all of you young people, seniors, all in between. Join me in reelecting, Donald J. Trump as the president. Our next president. Our re-elected president of the United States.”

Since the endorsement, associates have labeled him a traitor and an embarrassment, according to media reports, and the local Democratic Party is reportedly considering issuing a reprimand or endorsing his political opponent.

The DeKalb County Democratic Committee (DCDC) has moved to censure Jones after consulting with respective leadership teams.

The House District 91 Rep has identified himself as a Democrat and was elected to his current position as a Democrat, according to a press release, and it is the expectation that members of the party follow Bylaws and not undermine Democrats by endorsing the opposition. 

“No endorsement or pandemic will slow us down from defeating the occupant of the White House and all elected officials who stand with him," said DeKalb County Democratic Committee (DCDC) Chair John Jackson.