Since announcing his gubernatorial candidacy as a Democrat last week, Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson has been amassing endorsements from fellow Democrats and organized labor.

One group that will not endorse him, however, is the Flint Area Right to Life, the anti-abortion organization located squarely inside Swanson’s current turf, where he holds the highest political office.

RTL Director Judith Climer told The Midwesterner that Swanson indicated to her personally that he said he opposed abortion when he was first elevated to Sheriff in 2019.

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“When I first heard that he was going to be the undersheriff, I was told all these things about what a great man of God he is and how he’s a family man and he’s pro-life and all this and I thought I am really excited about this,” Climer said.

“We started having conversations together and I told him I was so excited to know that he was going to be the new sheriff because I will count on you to be the ranking Democrat in this county to stand up in front of all the other Democrats and set the record straight that it’s not okay to kill an unborn child, an elderly person, or a disabled person,” she said.

In her December 2019 Facebook post, Climer captioned a photograph of the pair seated together at a Republican Lincoln Day Dinner, “Proud to support our new Sheriff, Chris Swanson. Pro-God, Pro-family, Pro-life.”

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Since then, she noted his endorsements of fellow Democrats didn’t align with his previously stated stance and her organization’s agenda.

“I got suspicious when he came out and endorsed Dan Kildee right couple years ago right,” she said, referring to the Michigan’s former U.S. representative from Flint. “I called him out on it I called him up and I said Chris what am I missing how can you do this and he said well I got to stand behind law enforcement, noting that Kildee had secured a $100,000 government grant for the National Sheriffs Association I.G.N.I.T.E program, which aims to reduce generational incarceration and recidivism.

Climer said Swanson’s endorsements of Democrats and abortion proponents Kristen McDonald Rivet for a state congressional seat as well as the presidential bid of Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2o24 election indicated to her that he was no longer the political champion against abortion she had celebrated in 2019. Swanson endorsed Rivet in a television campaign commercial, and appeared onstage at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago last summer to pledge his support of Harris while controversially wearing his Genesee Sheriff uniform.

“He has never endorsed one Republican or one pro-life candidate in his entire time that I’ve known him,” Climer said.

Climer’s suspicions were confirmed when Swanson announced his candidacy last Thursday.

“I want to be clear — I support a woman’s right to choose because I trust women and believe decisions about abortion and reproductive care are best made by women with their doctors, faith, and family,” Swanson said in a statement last week.

Thus far, Swanson is challenging fellow Democrat and current Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson to replace Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, whose second term ends in 2026.