The super PAC supporting independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said it has collected enough signatures to get him on the ballot in two battleground states in the 2024 election.
“The grassroots energy and momentum give us more confidence than ever in our ability to knock out the remaining states on our list of states quickly,” PAC co-founder Tony Lyons said on Tuesday after RFK Jr. received enough signatures to qualify for ballots in Arizona and Georgia.
While Kennedy’s longshot bid is unlikely to garner enough support to win in November, his appearance on the ballot in pivotal swing states could reshuffle the electoral dynamics in a potential rematch between Biden and Trump. Biden defeated Trump by less than half a percentage point in both Arizona and Georgia in the 2020 election.
Kennedy is currently on the ballot in one state, Utah, and his campaign has gathered enough signatures to appear on the ballots in New Hampshire and Hawaii.
A New York Times/Siena College poll from October of registered voters in Arizona found Kennedy earning 26% support, with Biden and Trump earning 33% each. A similar poll of registered voters in Georgia showed Kennedy with 24%, trailing Trump at 36% with Biden at 29%. [...]
Lyons told CNN on Tuesday the PAC has yet to submit its signatures to the elections offices in Arizona and Georgia, but plans to do so in compliance with FEC guidelines.
“Each state has specific rules about the timing and process of the submission. We will follow the exact rules and FEC precedent as explained by our attorneys and without coordinating with the campaign,” Lyons said. (CNN)
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The super PAC will continue its efforts gathering signatures in 10 other states, including Michigan, California, New York, and Texas.
Kennedy is fighting to appear on the ballot in every state and Washington, D.C. ahead of the 2024 election—the hardest part of an independent bid, according to Ed Rollins, campaign manager for Ross Perot, who unsuccessfully ran as an independent candidate for president in 1992.
"It's a very difficult process…to be an independent candidate, and qualify for the ballot it takes a real massive grassroots effort," Rollins told CBS.
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