Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues his aggressive campaign to appear on the ballot in all 50 states for the November presidential election.
On the day of the New York deadline, Kennedy submitted 135,519 signatures, which is just over three times the minimum requirement of 45,000 or 1% of the total number of votes in the prior gubernatorial election, whichever is less. Additionally, at least 500 signatures must come from half of the congressional districts in the state.
“The rule of thumb is to file with more than double the minimum signatures required. He did that. So, that’s a good sign. We’ll see how they look. There certainly could be a ton of bad ones in there. But, I’d be happy if I was him that I got more than double the minimum,” said Joseph T. Burns a GOP election lawyer.”
Kennedy has qualified for the ballot in seven states - Utah, Michigan, California, Delaware, Oklahoma, Hawaii and Texas. His campaign says they have collected enough signatures to be on the ballot in eight others in addition to New York including New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Idaho, Nebraska, Iowa, Ohio, and New Jersey.
The clock starts now for objectors to file objections to Kennedy’s petitions. They would need to successfully invalidate 90,000 signatures and work quickly within the timeline for conducting their research and filing objections. Objectors must be registered voters in New York State. Normally these objectors are tied to both political parties who are interested in knocking a competing campaign off the ballot.
Kennedy is suing to remove the heavy burden third-party candidates face in participating in elections. His campaign has spent over $1 million on petition carriers to secure a spot on the ballot in New York. They have filed a lawsuit in Federal court against the New York Board of Elections to contest the 45,000 signature requirement.
“Plaintiff has been forced to pay petition circulators $90.00 per hour, costing Plaintiff over $1 million just to secure ballot access in New York for the 2024 general election ballot,” Kennedy’s campaign said in the filing.
As we head into June, an average of 167 polls shows Kennedy with 7.9% support, Trump at 41%, and Biden at 40%. Kennedy has not yet secured enough state ballots to have a path to the needed 270 electoral votes. However, if he appears on the ballot in just one of the battleground swing states where the race between Trump and Biden is very close, his presence could be the factor that decides the election.
Political pundits still question whether or not President Biden or President Trump would gain the most politically from removing Kennedy from the ballot in states nationwide. Polls indicate that Kennedy is taking votes from both candidates, and the numbers change as the campaigning progresses.