Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s quest to appear on the ballot in all 50 states and DC has seen him gain access to Michigan and Utah so far. However, the process is expensive and time-consuming without party backing.
Kennedy's campaign aims to collect signatures that exceed the threshold by at least 60% to ensure validity. Third-party and independent candidates face long odds in a political system built around two major parties.
On April 19, 2024, CNN reported that Kennedy will appear on Hawaii's presidential ballot following a Friday ruling that dismissed an objection from the Democratic Party of Hawaii regarding the validity of his We the People Party. This marks Kennedy's third state where he has officially qualified for ballot access.
CBS News reported on April 20, 2024, that Kennedy is working to get on the ballot in all 50 states and DC. The campaign aims to collect signatures that exceed the threshold by at least 60% to ensure validity.
The New York Times published an article on April 20, 2024, detailing how Kennedy gained access to the Michigan ballot by joining forces with the Natural Law Party. The party is a tiny political group in Michigan that has been kept on the ballot for 22 years by its chairman Doug Dern.
Despite several notable members of the Kennedy family not endorsing Joe Biden, such as Caroline Kennedy and Maria Shriver, Biden's campaign maintains that these non-endorsements are due to their nonpolitical professional roles. On April 18, 2024, at least 15 members of the Kennedy family endorsed President Joe Biden in an attempt to deflate RFK Jr.'s candidacy and emphasize the importance of reelecting him and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Biden's campaign has pledged a full court press to challenge Kennedy, including legal challenges to his ballot access and ads linking him to Trump supporters. The anti-vaccine group Kennedy led for years, Children's Health Defense, currently has a lawsuit pending against several news organizations accusing them of violating antitrust laws by taking action to identify misinformation.