As the time approaches for names to officially be placed on the fall ballot, a New York state judge has struck a blow Robert F. Kennedy Jr. independent presidential campaign.
Justice Christina L. Fish said the address Kennedy listed as his home address on his state nominating petitions — 84 Croton Lake Road, Katonah, N.Y. — was a “fiction” he used solely to maintain his voter registration and advance his political aspirations.
The decision, which is still subject to appeal, will remove Kennedy from the New York ballot and could result in his removal from the ballot in other states.
Research shows two other people utilize 84 Croton Lake Road as their address – Timothy Haydock AND Barbara Moss. Haydock, Emergency Room Physician, testified at the 2012 trial that he had befriended the Kennedy family in the tardy 1960s. Moss, his wife, has owned the property since 1991 and testified earlier this month that Kennedy rents a room from her for $500 a month, though there is no formal lease.
Opponents of RFK Jr.’s petition argued that his actual place of residence is Los Angeles, the home he shares with his wife, an actress Cheryl Hines.
“Judge Ryba’s ruling is an attack on the voters of New York who signed a record number of signatures to put me on their ballot,” Kennedy said in a press release. “The Democratic Party is unrecognizable to me. The party of my father and uncle’s day was dedicated to expanding voter rights and understood that competition at the ballot box was an essential part of American democracy. The DNC is now a party that uses legal battles in place of the democratic electoral process.”
“[RFK Jr.] doesn’t believe the rules apply to him and refuses to consider the consequences of his actions,” a DNC spokesman said Matta Corridoni said in a statement after the verdict was announced.
“That’s why he’s ready to play the role of a spoiler Donald Trump in this election and why he offered to support Trump in exchange for a job in the Trump administration.”
More than a half-dozen states rejected Kennedy’s petitions from both Democrats and other allies.
A legal challenge was filed in Pennsylvania on Thursday arguing that the nomination papers filed by Kennedy and his vice presidential candidate Nicole Shanahan “At best, they show a fundamental disregard” for state law and the signature-collecting process.
It claims Kennedy’s papers contain “numerous unauthorized signatures and defects,” are torn, taped, and contain “handwriting patterns and corrections suggesting that the named voters did not sign these sheets.”
Kennedy’s attorney said the challenge contained specious allegations. The court will hold an evidentiary hearing next Tuesday in Harrisburg.
