adhered (to), clung (to), hewed (to), kept (to), 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, held to, 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