adhered (to), clung (to), hewed (to), kept (to), stood by, stuck (to or with)

cleaved (to)advocated, backed, championed, confirmed, defended, endorsed(also indorsed), espoused, supported, upheldaccepted, adopted, cherished, cultivated, embraced, followed, fostered, heededbackstopped, bolstered, boosted, buttressed, enforced, reinforced(also reenforced)

abided by, lived up to

defected (from)

abandoned, abnegated, deserted, forsook, gave up, relinquished, spurned, surrenderedabjured, recalled, recanted, reconsidered, reneged, renounced, retracted, revoked, took back, unsaid, withdrewcontroverted, disagreed (with), disproved, disputed, rebutted, refutedcontradicted, denied, disavowed, disclaimed, disowned, gainsaid, negated, negatived, repudiatedbacked down, backed off, backtracked