Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 2024 presidential campaign
| Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for President 2024 | |
|---|---|
| Campaign | 2024 U.S. presidential election 2024 Democratic primaries (until October 9, 2023) |
| Candidate | Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Environmental lawyer (for President) Nicole Shanahan Lawyer and technologist (for Vice President) |
| Affiliation | Independent Democratic Party (until October 9, 2023) |
| Announced | April 19, 2023 |
| Suspended | August 23, 2024 |
| Headquarters | Walpole, Massachusetts |
| Key people | Amaryllis Fox Kennedy (campaign manager) Dennis Kucinich (campaign manager until October 13, 2023) Charles Eisenstein (senior advisor) John E. Sullivan (treasurer) Del Bigtree (communications director) Stefanie Spear (campaign press secretary) |
| Receipts | US$44,029,356.48 (April 30, 2024) |
| Slogan | Declare Your Independence Heal the Divide The Remedy Is Kennedy The America That Almost Was, and Yet May Be America Strong Make America Healthy Again |
| Website | |
| kennedy24 | |
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced his campaign for the 2024 United States presidential election on April 19, 2023. An environmental lawyer, writer, and member of the Kennedy family, he is known for advocating anti-vaccine misinformation and a variety of public health conspiracy theories. He initially ran for the Democratic Party nomination, but announced on October 9, 2023, that he would run as an independent candidate.
Kennedy initially received support from independents and youth, while also drawing significant support from Republican Party donors and allies of Donald Trump who believed he would serve as a spoiler for then-candidate President Joe Biden. His campaign also received strong support and praise from various tech industry executives in Silicon Valley. Reactions to his campaign from his extended family were largely negative.
On August 23, 2024, Kennedy suspended the campaign operations and endorsed the campaign of the Republican nominee, former president Trump. Kennedy then began removing his name from the ballot in ten swing states—though he was unable to do so in Wisconsin and Michigan—although his name remained on ballots in red states and blue states. The following month, Kennedy began to withdraw from safe Republican-leaning states, to give the Trump campaign a better chance of winning. Trump appointed Kennedy as Secretary of Health and Human Services in his second cabinet.