MILWAUKEE (SPECTRUM NEWS) — The Democratic National Convention has been a strange time for Deb Miller. A lifelong conservative, Miller says she’s voted and campaigned for conservative candidates since proudly casting her first-ever ballot for Ronald Reagan. 

But this week, she found herself in a different position: Endorsing Democratic nominee Joe Biden, in a video streamed across the country as part of the convention’s virtual programming.

“That was surreal,” Miller says. “It was something I never thought I would be doing.”

Miller, who lives in Spring Green, Wis., was featured in a montage of conservative voters declaring their support for Biden’s campaign, which aired just after former Ohio Gov. John Kasich urged his fellow Republicans to vote blue this year. She originally submitted her video to Republican Voters Against Trump, a group working to spur conservatives to vote the current president out, before it was picked up for local advertisements and, eventually, the first night of the DNC.

Though Miller doesn’t consider herself a natural public speaker — she had to spend some time writing out and practicing her thoughts before letting the camera roll — she says she felt a strong urge to speak up against Trump, whom she sees as having a “lack of character.” In her video, Miller talks about how she favors Biden as a “much-needed example of empathy and human decency.”

“Though I disagree with him on several issues, I will be voting for Joe Biden in hopes that he will restore order and integrity to the executive branch,” she says in the video.

Before Trump’s presidency, Miller says she spent decades supporting conservative causes. She grew up in eastern Iowa, and her father, who had a construction business, was a Republican who “thought Nixon could do no wrong.” 

In college, she became an evangelical Christian, which she says deepened her convictions. She later helped campaign for Pat Robertson, a conservative evangelist who ran for the Republican nomination in the ‘80s. 

Her conservative views haven’t meant she always supports Republican candidates. Though she voted Republican up until George W. Bush’s presidency, she says she didn’t vote for him in his second term.

“There started to be just a lot of greed that I saw in the Republican party,” she says. “I've changed more to voting sometimes Republican, sometimes writing in someone I would prefer — but always a conservative.”

These days, Miller’s faith is still central to her life and her politics. Her husband, Derek, is the pastor at a church in Spring Green, where they’ve now lived for about 20 years. 

Usually, she says she’s mostly a single-issue voter: She is pro-life, and the issue of abortion is central to her politics. That’s been one of the major reasons she has refrained from voting for pro-choice Democrats in the past. 

This election, though, she says the other relevant issues have become enough to push her across the party line. And while many of her evangelical friends still support Trump — nationally, Pew researchers found that more than 80% of white evangelical voters lean toward re-electing him — Miller says she sees the current president’s behavior as running counter to Jesus’ teachings.

“For me, I try to do everything in the light of what I think the Lord wants, in light of the Bible,” Miller says. “And right now, for me, that means really highly valuing integrity and honesty and respect and justice.”

Miller says it’s been frustrating to see the divides in the country, especially trying to communicate online. She’s made it a priority to engage with people one-on-one and work out disagreements that way — like among attendees at her church — but says they’ve still had some people leave the congregation because of differing opinions. COVID-19 has been a contentious point, she says, as the Millers have asked churchgoers to wear masks to outdoor services during the pandemic.

Since her Biden endorsement went national, Miller says her husband and five adult children have all been supportive. Though she still considers herself a conservative and disagrees with some Democratic views — she favors a smaller government, for one — Miller says she hopes a Biden administration would be tough on Russia, take action on climate change, bring on knowledgeable experts to cabinet positions, and protect free press, among other policies. And overall, she sees Biden as the candidate who is more aligned with her values.

“I hope that we can treat each other with decency and respect,” Miller says. “I just believe Joe Biden, out of all the possibilities, he's the best person to try to bring a measure of peace and empathy and decency. So hopefully we can avoid civil strife, because that's the last thing I want for our nation.”