
RFK Jr. Loses Supreme Court Battle to Appear on New York Ballot, Reports Reuters
By Andrew Chung
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court declined a request from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to have his name reinstated on the ballot in New York, despite his suspension of the presidential campaign as an independent candidate in August and his endorsement of Donald Trump.
The justices rejected an appeal from Kennedy’s campaign and supporters, which sought to compel New York election officials to place his name back on the ballot after he was disqualified by state courts for using an invalid residential address in his paperwork.
Upon suspending his campaign, Kennedy indicated that he would withdraw from races in closely contested states but would remain on the ballot in others. He has since encouraged his supporters across the board to support Trump and has stepped away from the ballot in several Republican-leaning states.
Kennedy’s challenge to remain on the ballot in Democratic-leaning New York originated when a state judge ruled in favor of voters who argued that Kennedy had deceptively listed a false New York address on his petition, when he actually resides in California, thereby violating state law. The judge characterized the address as a "sham" used to maintain his voter registration and advance his political ambitions in New York.
Kennedy’s campaign contested the residency requirement in federal court, seeking an order to keep him on the ballot. Both a federal judge and the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied that request earlier in September.
The campaign urged the Supreme Court to step in, arguing that lower courts had not determined that anyone had been misled by the address, and that his removal deprives his supporters of the opportunity to vote for their preferred candidate.
In communication from an attorney representing a political action committee that supports Kennedy, as well as a voter who signed his nomination petition who joined the federal lawsuit, it was stated that Kennedy has merely suspended his campaign, not terminated it. The attorney emphasized that supporters retain the right to have him on the ballot and to vote for him "regardless of the current suspended status of his campaign."
New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a response urging the Supreme Court to deny Kennedy’s request, highlighting that tens of thousands of ballots have already been distributed to overseas and military voters.