Kevin Nicholson announced last year that he would be seeking the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate, but apparently his parents had other ideas.
Just weeks after he announced his candidacy, Nicholson’s parents both donated $2,700 each — the legal maximum — to the campaign of Tammy Baldwin, the Democratic senator their son is trying to unseat.
“My parents have a different worldview than I do, and it is not surprising that they would support a candidate like Tammy Baldwin who shares their perspective,” Nicholson said in a statement to CNN.
Nicholson’s parents are longtime supporters and frequent donors to Democratic politicians in Wisconsin, according to CNN. This is also not the first time Donna and Michael Nicholson have contributed to Baldwin’s campaign.
Nicholson himself previously served as the president of the College Democrats of America, later attributing his political reversal to his time serving as a Marine in Iraq.
“I’m a conservative today not because I was born one, but because of the experience I earned as a Marine in combat, my experience as a husband and father, my choice to be a Christian, the schools I chose to attend and the decision to pursue the career that I have,” he said. “Regardless of who may disagree with my life decisions, I would not trade these experiences for anything, and they will always guide my views as Wisconsin’s next U.S. Senator.”