Mitt Romney Gets Standing Ovation At Democratic Presidential Debate

MANCHESTER, N.H. ― Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) received a standing ovation at the Democratic presidential primary debate here on Friday after Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) cited his “courage” in voting to convict President Donald Trump on the impeachment charge of abuse of power.

Romney was the only GOP senator who broke with his party by voting Wednesday to remove Trump from office over his dealings with Ukraine. The president and his allies subsequently lashed out at the senator by questioning his faith and calling him nasty names.

“There was courage from Mitt Romney, who took a very, very difficult vote [on impeachment],” Klobuchar said on the debate stage, prompting a round of applause from the audience.

Romney, the former 2012 Republican presidential nominee, is getting love from Democrats around the country who once fiercely opposed his campaign against President Barack Obama’s reelection. The sentiment was echoed by voters in New Hampshire this week ahead of the state’s primary next week.

“He’s a hero for me right this moment,” Lorrie Belinsky, an independent retired school administrator from Derry, said Thursday. “But I liked him as governor in Massachusetts. He did a good job down there ― brought a lot of change down there. Good for him to stand up.”

“On a separate note, can we give a shoutout to Mitt Romney?” another New Hampshire voter said Thursday. “In a nonpartisan way, just as a citizen ... it was just nice to have someone say, ‘I’m making it on principle and not out of political leanings or fear-based decision-making.’ It was just very refreshing to hear in this time.”

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.