From the Liveblog of
Friday, August 23, 2024
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announces ahead of planned speech that he’s endorsing Trump
PHOENIX (AP) — Ahead of a planned speech, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s campaign says in a Pennsylvania court filing that he is endorsing Donald Trump for president.
Kennedy’s independent campaign also requests that he be removed from the Pennsylvania ballot, though it is not immediately clear that he is officially dropping out of the race.
Kennedy had a speech planned in Arizona today to discuss “the present historical moment and his path forward,” according to his campaign. Hours later, Trump is set to hold a rally in neighboring Glendale. Trump’s campaign has teased that he will be joined by “a special guest,” though neither campaign responded to messages about whether Kennedy would be that guest.
The late-stage development in the presidential race could give the former president a modest boost from Kennedy’s supporters.
The Pennsylvania filing comes in a case in which Kennedy was defending his paperwork to get on the ballot in the battleground state against a challenge by two Democratic activists.
The filing says that “as a result of today’s endorsement of Donald Trump” he is requesting the dismissal of his campaign’s nomination papers so that he will not appear on Pennsylvania’s ballot.
Trump told CNN on Tuesday that he would “love” an endorsement from Kennedy, whom he called a “brilliant guy.” He also said he would “certainly” be open to Kennedy playing a role in his administration if Kennedy drops out and endorses him.
Kennedy Jr. first entered the 2024 presidential race as a Democrat but left the party last fall to run as an independent. He built an unusually strong base for a third-party bid, fueled in part by anti-establishment voters and vaccine skeptics who have followed his anti-vaccine work since the COVID-19 pandemic. But he has since faced strained campaign finances and mounting legal challenges, including a recent ruling from a New York judge that he should not appear on the ballot in the state because he listed a “sham” address on nominating petitions.
