Three parents whose children lost their lives at the hands of illegal aliens endorsed Dr. Kelli Ward to replace John McCain in the U.S. Senate.

Steve Ronnebeck, father of slain young man Grant Ronnebeck, spoke at a Ward town hall event on Saturday where he expressed his support for the former Arizona State Senator. He provided this statement to Breitbart News in endorsement of Ward for U.S. Senate:

There is no question that John McCain is an American hero, I thank him for his service. It is time to break up the Washington establishment and elect a senator that believes in the constitution and the rule of law. We need to elect someone that will secure our borders, follow the Constitution, and get America back. I believe Kelli Ward is that someone. I believe Kelli will fight for my son, and fight for my family.

Ronnebeck’s son Grant was killed when an illegal alien came into the central Mesa, Arizona convenience store he was working in and demanded a pack of cigarettes. Grant Ronnebeck handed over a pack only to have the criminal alien shoot him in the face anyway and walk calmly over the young man’s body to get multiple packs of cigarettes before leaving the store.

Steve Ronnebeck recounted the events in a September 2015 interview with Breitbart Texas. Local CBS5 reported that Apolinar Altamirano is a convicted felon who had previously taken a plea deal for burglary, for which he received two years probation, in exchange for theft and kidnapping charges being dropped. The Arizona Republic reported in February 2015 that court documents in that case contained testimony from the burglary victim that Altamirano sexually assaulted her and that he and two accomplices told her they were with the Mexican mafia with ties to Sinaloa.

Mary Ann Mendoza, mother of Sgt. Brandon Mendoza, told Breitbart News:

I have met with Kelli Ward and know without a doubt that she needs to replace John McCain in the great state of Arizona.  The time has come for new ideas, greater commitment to the citizens of Arizona and Dr Kelli Ward will provide what has been lacking with John McCain.

Mendoza lost her police officer son when an illegal alien driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.238 percent, almost three times the legal limit, drove the wrong way on the Phoenix area I-10, US-60 Valley freeway ramp, striking the vehicle off-duty Mesa police officer Sgt. Brandon Mendoza was driving and killing him, according to CBS5, which cited the Arizona Department of Public Safety. Mexican national Raul Silva-Corona, 42, died at the scene. The local news report cited records that the illegal alien had been apprehended by U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Arizona in 2002, then extradited to Colorado for an unrelated criminal charge.

Mrs. Mendoza spoke to millions of Americans from the stage of the Republican National Convention last month where she described her son’s life that was cut short and said, “A vote for Hillary [Clinton] is putting all of our children’s lives at risk.” In June she called Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, “the change this country needs” in comments to Breitbart Texas.

Shannon Estes, mother of Shayley Estes, also attended Tuesday’s event for Kelli Ward and told Breitbart News:

I endorse Kelli for many reasons…she sees the horrendous problem of our borders and the problem of nothing being done, and even amnesty to refugees that are costing us so much money, she has a priority to get on this issue! I love that she has first hand knowledge of the problems with our health care system and what needs to be fixed and is going to fight to fix things that Obamacare ruined. I also love that she’s a military wife and will fight for our military to see they have what they need, and the pay and support they deserve! The VA hospitals are a complete disaster, we have 22 vets a day that commit suicide due to no support, waiting months for appointments, and overall poor care. She is willing to tackle this huge problem also to make things better for these deserving vets! McCain has done a lot of damage in many areas, and it’s time for him to go and let Kelli start to clean up his mess!

Estes lost her young daughter Shayley at the hands of a Russian national illegally in the U.S. Igor Zubko, 26, shot and killed his 22-year-old ex-girlfriend in Phoenix just ten days after being served with an order of protection last year, according to ABC 15. The Arizona Republic reported on court records that revealed Zubko sent a text message to Estes’s roommate that read, “She will be brutally murdered from Russia with love” after he received the order. Police accounts cited in the report state that the roommate found Estes dead in their home with gunshots to her back, abdomen, and arms.

Ward welcomed the endorsements and responded, telling Breitbart News:

A secure border would have prevented the deaths of their children at the hands of criminal illegal aliens. If we want an America First immigration policy instead of open borders and amnesty, we must retire John McCain on Tuesday. McCain has had 33 years to cement the deal on the border, but now he brags on his website about fixing the borders in Jordan and Lebanon for $1.3 billion. This dangerous distraction is literally costing American lives on American soil, and there’s no excuse for it. Senator McCain has innocent American blood on his hands.

Every election, it’s ‘build the danged fence,’ but next thing you know, he’s leading another amnesty gang to pillage the American people again, provide cheap labor for golf courses, and new votes for Democrats, even at the expense of innocent lives, American citizens senselessly slaughtered while minding their own business.

We need new leadership to Mix the Mortar to Fix the Border, and that’s an all-of-the-above approach: more physical barriers, more personnel, better technology, E-Verify, and immediate deportation of criminal aliens. We need to move the border patrol to the actual border, not dozens of miles away, and we need to let them do their job, which is to stop illegal aliens in their tracks, not roll out the welcome wagon. And we must ‘cut off the goodies’ as Ben Carson used to say– all the licenses, welfare, housing, food stamps, education, and healthcare benefits funded by taxpayers. We can’t stop the flow of illegals with flowers and teddy bears.

Follow Michelle Moons on Twitter @MichelleDiana