By Brendan Scanland
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A third-party candidate in the race for President of the United States suspended his campaign on Friday and endorsed one of the two major party nominees.
“It’s with a sense of victory and not defeat that I’m suspending my campaign activities,” said Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who suspended his campaign on Friday and endorsed former President Donald Trump.
Kennedy has seen a dip in the polls in the recent weeks. But even a small number of his supporters, rallying behind the former President, can have a big impact.
In his 2023 campaign launch, Kennedy polled as high as 20 percent in some early polls. For a third-party candidate, RFK held his ground in the polls for several months. Some experts believe it’s because he was viewed as a viable alternative to President Biden and former President Trump.
“The biggest draw for RFK was that he wasn’t Trump or Biden- these two old guys who people had known and were just disenchanted with,” said Todd Belt, professor and Director of the Political Management Master’s Program at George Washington University.
He says once President Biden announced he would not seek reelection, Kennedy’s poll numbers shifted.
“Once Biden left the nomination to Harris, you saw RFK’s poll numbers just plummeted afterwards. So a lot of people were just looking for an alternative,” said Belt.
However, Kennedy did have nationwide support. His campaign collected one million signatures to appear on ballots across the country. The question now, is how many Kennedy voters will now get behind former President Trump—especially those in swing states, like Pennsylvania and Michigan.
“Considering that the last presidential election was decided by only 43,000 voters across three states, this could make a difference, especially in a state like Pennsylvania, where Harris is only ahead by 1% or still within the margin of error,” said Belt.
Kennedy’s name will appear on ballots in most states, mostly those that are safe blue or safe red. However, in about 10 battleground states, where RFK said his presence would be a spoiler, he plans to remove his name from the ballot.
