By JONATHAN J. COOPER (Associated Press)
The lack of excitement many Americans feel about a presidential rematch has heightened interest in alternatives to the major-party candidates, none more so than Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose well-known name has helped him generate interest for his independent candidacy.
Kennedy is a significant underdog to win Electoral College votes, let alone the presidency. However, his campaign events have attracted large crowds of supporters and individuals intrigued by his message. He plans to reveal his vice presidential pick later this month in Oakland, California, and is creating anticipation that he might select New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers or former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura.
Here is a look at his campaign and what he stands for:
Who is RFK Jr?
Kennedy, 70, is a member of perhaps the nation’s most famous political family. His uncle was President John F. Kennedy. His father served as attorney general and a U.S. senator before seeking the Democratic nomination for president. Both were assassinated.
RFK Jr. established himself as an activist, author and lawyer who championed environmental causes such as clean water.
More recently, his activism has moved into conspiracies and contradicted scientific consensus, most notably on vaccines. Some members of his family have publicly criticized his views. Dozens of his family members posed with President Joe Biden at a St. Patrick’s Day reception at the White House in a photo his sister Kerry Kennedy posted to social media.
Kennedy founded Waterkeeper Alliance, which works to secure clean water, and Children’s Health Defense, an anti-vaccine group that saw its reach grow rapidly during the pandemic.
Children’s Health Defense has a lawsuit pending against a number of news organizations, including The Associated Press, alleging they violated antitrust laws by taking action to identify misinformation, including about COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines. Kennedy took leave from the group when he announced his run for president but is listed as one of its attorneys in the lawsuit.
He’s married to actress Cheryl Hines.
What does Kennedy’s campaign look like?
Kennedy’s need to collect thousands of signatures to get on the ballot has taken him to places that rarely see presidential candidates, including Hawaii, Wyoming and West Virginia.
At events in Phoenix and Las Vegas, hundreds of supporters queued up outside hours before he was scheduled to arrive. He attracts a legion of fans, many of whom have listened extensively to Kennedy’s interviews on podcasts or YouTube videos.
In Nevada, massive graphics and photos were projected on three walls as upbeat music played. Drinks and merchandise were for sale.
Kennedy speaks in a quiet, strained voice, sometimes haltingly, the result of a neurological condition called spasmodic dysphonia.
What does he talk about?
Kennedy presents himself as a truth-teller with a history of battling for the middle class against powerful interests. He cites lawsuits he’s won against corporate giants like Monsanto and DuPont.
He claimed in February in Las Vegas that he can improve the country. He mentioned suing various agencies to understand corporate capture and how to undo it.
Kennedy has criticized U.S. backing for Ukraine and expressed support for Israel’s fight against Hamas. He aims to cut military and health care spending due to their impact on budget deficits, and address increasing housing costs for young homebuyers.
Kennedy has gained a devoted following among people who distrust institutions and believe corporations, specifically pharmaceutical companies, have taken over the government.
He has not avoided expressing his controversial opinions on health care and vaccines. He wants to dismantle the public health bureaucracy and redirect research away from infectious diseases and vaccines toward chronic diseases.
Kennedy asserts he is not against vaccines and denies ever advising the public to avoid vaccination. However, he has consistently made his opposition to vaccines apparent. He stated on a podcast that “there’s no vaccine that is safe and effective” and has encouraged people to defy CDC guidelines on childhood vaccination.
While there are rare cases of severe reactions to vaccines, the billions of doses administered worldwide provide real-world evidence of their safety. According to the World Health Organization, vaccines prevent up to 5 million deaths annually.
Can he win?
The U.S. has a history of rejecting independent or third-party presidential candidates. The last president to win without a party’s support was George Washington, and he did so before political parties existed.
The most recent third-party candidate to become president was Abraham Lincoln with the newly formed Republican Party.
The last third-party candidate to receive more than single digits in the popular vote was Ross Perot, a businessman who earned 19% in 1992 and 8% in 1996. However, he did not win any electoral votes.
Although the independent portion of the electorate is growing, it is still much smaller than the voters who consistently back Republican or Democratic candidates, even if they consider themselves independent.
In other words, the chances of success are slim.
Kennedy’s optimism is based on his fairly strong performance in several national polls. During the 2016 presidential campaign, polls regularly indicated high single or low double digits of support for libertarian Gary Johnson, but he ultimately received only about 3% of the vote nationwide.
Horse-race polls are also notoriously unreliable this far out from an election, and many Americans are unfamiliar with Kennedy. A February AP-NORC poll revealed that 29% of Americans are not familiar enough with Kennedy to have an opinion about him.
Some people who claim they would support him may also be swayed by his famous last name rather than his actual pitch as a candidate. A poll by CNN/SSRS conducted in the spring found that 20% of those considering backing Kennedy for the Democratic nomination—when he was running at the time—chose to do so because of his family name and connections, while only 12% cited their support for his views and policies.
However, for any of that to be important, he needs to make it onto the ballot.
How would he manage to get on the ballot?
Never mind winning the election; simply running for president is a difficult process, particularly for candidates like Kennedy who are not affiliated with a party.
Each state has different regulations, requiring a team of lawyers to ensure everything is done correctly. Most states demand thousands of signatures.
A supportive super PAC for Kennedy is helping pay assisting with Kennedy’s efforts to get on the ballot in several states. His allies have established a political party to facilitate the process in certain states by gaining party recognition and nominating Kennedy as its candidate.
He has been granted approval to be on the ballot in Utah. His campaign and super PAC claim he has gathered sufficient signatures to qualify in several other states, including the crucial battlegrounds of Arizona, Georgia, and Nevada, although election officials in those states have not yet confirmed his candidacy.
Kennedy has also indicated that he has been in discussions with officials from the Libertarian Party, although it's uncertain what a collaboration between the two might entail.
Who is working on his behalf?
Kennedy is relying on his family and his supporters in the anti-vaccine community to fill positions in his campaign, forming a leadership team with minimal experience in political work.
His campaign manager is Amaryllis Fox Kennedy, his daughter-in-law who formerly served as a CIA officer and has no prior experience in politics.
His communications director, Del Bigtree, is the founder of the Informed Consent Action Network, an anti-vaccine organization. He also produced “Vaxxed,” a film critical of vaccines that promoted the debunked notion of vaccines causing autism.
Press secretary Stefanie Spear was an editor for the Children’s Health Defense news website. Charles Eisenstein, a New Age author, serves as an adviser.
Kennedy also has staff and volunteers across various states focused on gathering signatures to secure his spot on the ballot.
