Would Mitt Romney vote for Donald Trump over Joe Biden? He says 'absolutely not'

WASHINGTON − Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, will not vote for former President Donald Trump over President Joe Biden in the 2024 presidential election, he told The Source's Kaitlan Collins Wednesday night.

When asked if he would vote for the former president over Biden, Romney responded, "No. No, no, absolutely not."

Romney said there are two factors − position on policies and character − that he considers when deciding who he wants to see as the next president.

"On foreign policy, I’m not aligned with Donald Trump, at least as I understand his policy," he said, later adding this his primary consideration for a president is their character.

"Having a president who is so defaulted of character would have an enormous impact on the character of America," Romney added.

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But if the 2024 presidential election was held today, Romney said he thinks Trump would be headed to the White House for another term.

The Utah lawmaker has been an outspoken critic of Trump and was the only Republican to vote to convict the former president in his 2020 impeachment trial. Romney was one of several Republican senators who voted in favor of impeachment during the second trial following the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Romney did not specify whether he'd back the Democratic nominee in December, but in the past, he has not ruled out voting for Joe Biden. He has previously suggested that his Senate colleague Joe Manchin, a Democrat from West Virginia, would make a good president. Manchin declined to make a bid for the presidency.

Romney, who ran for president in 2012, announced last year he will not be running for reelection when his Senate term ends in January 2025. The 76-year-old said he will be in his mid-80s if he serves a second term and emphasized the need for a new generation of leaders.

"They are the ones who need to make the decisions that will shape the world they will be living in," he said.

Romney has previously commented that he doesn't feel Biden or Trump are leading their parties to confront the issues facing the country.