Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that he will suspend his independent presidential campaign and seek to have his name removed from the ballot in key battleground states while supporting the re-election of former President Donald Trump.
Kennedy made the announcement, saying he was keeping his promise not to be a spoiler in the election, during a live-streamed news conference Friday afternoon. It came after he filed papers in a Pennsylvania court asking for his and vice presidential candidate Nicole Shanahan’s names to be removed from the state’s ballot.
The one-page motion filed in the Court of Common Pleas said that because of Kennedy’s support for former President Donald Trump’s re-election, Kennedy and his vice presidential running mate, Nicole Shanahan, would no longer oppose the Democratic-backed challenge to their candidacies.
“In April 2023, I launched my campaign for president of the United States. I began this journey as a Democrat, the party of my father, the party of my uncle, the party to which I pledge allegiance,” he said, adding that he had worked strenuous to promote his candidacy despite skepticism and an “ongoing legal battle” challenging his candidacy.
“In a fair system, I believe I would have won the election,” Kennedy said, suggesting the media, the party primary system and the courts were against him.
“I am sad to say that while democracy may still be alive at its core, it has become little more than a slogan for our political institutions, for our media, for our government, and, saddest of all to me, for the Democratic Party,” Kennedy said.
Kennedy said he would remain on the ballot in states where no elections are ongoing and that “there is a possibility that he could end up in the White House in a contingent election.”
Kennedy is widely seen by both parties as a potential spoiler in the 2024 race. A move to support either major party’s candidate could tip the election in their favor.
Paul Rossi, Kennedy’s attorney, has previously said there are no plans to withdraw his name from the ballot in Pennsylvania. Although the campaign filed a motion to withdraw Kennedy from the ballot in Arizona on Thursday.
“We will not take back the vote in Pennsylvania,” Rossi told the Capital-Star. “He supports — whatever he does today, it has no bearing on what we do here.”
Asked if he was aware of the request to remove him from the ballot in Arizona, another key swing state, Rossi replied: “I’m aware of everything.”
Kennedy’s campaign did not respond to questions about Kennedy’s plans or Rossi’s statements.
NBC News on Wednesday reported that Kennedy planned to drop out of the race and endorse Republican candidate Donald Trump, according to multiple sources. On Thursday, Kennedy’s campaign filed paperwork in Arizona to withdraw from the presidential election in that state.
In an interview published Tuesday, Nicole Shanahan, Kennedy’s vice presidential running mate, told the Impact Theory podcast that she and Kennedy are considering whether to stay in the race or drop out and endorse Trump.
Rossi represents Kennedy in Commonwealth Court Case filed by voters in Philadelphia and Dauphin County alleging that Kennedy used a false address to apply for ballot access and failed to meet signature requirements. The case is backed by Democratic super PAC Clear Choice Action.
A ruling is expected soon, though it may not be in Kennedy’s favor. At a hearing in the case Tuesday, Kennedy was unable to speak on his own behalf because he arrived nearly two hours tardy.
The deadline to withdraw from the Pennsylvania ballot is Aug. 12. Kennedy’s campaign has not filed such a motion and will have to ask the Commonwealth Court for permission to remove him from the ballot unless the case against him is successful.
Kennedy’s campaign started off with a lot of momentum for a third-party candidate, polling as high as 10 percent earlier this year. But after a series of scandals and an increasingly tight race between the two major party candidates, Kennedy’s poll numbers have fallen below 5 percent.
Kennedy embraced many baseless conspiracy theories during his campaign, especially when it came to health. His campaign also faced a number of scandals, including last report that Kennedy faked the death of a bear cub in Central Park to make it look like it was hit by a bicycle almost 10 years ago.
This story will be updated.
