Midnight Deadline Looms for RFK Jr. Campaign

He's running out of time to qualify for CNN debate

by Robb Quinn
June 19, 2024

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during the Libertarian National Convention last month. Jose Luis Magana photo

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. initially ran in the Democratic primary against President Biden before mounting an independent campaign instead.Credit...Rachel Woolf photo

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is running out of time to qualify for next week's CNN-hosted presidential debate. Reuters reports that the independent presidential candidate has not hit the threshold of 15% support in four separate national polls and qualifying for the ballot in enough states to potentially win the presidency. The deadline to qualify is midnight Wednesday, and Kennedy is unlikely to reach the targets before then, especially since federal offices are closed for the Juneteenth holiday, USA Today reports.

CNN says Kennedy has hit 15% in only three polls and is on the ballot in just six states, reports Reuters, though his campaign says he is on the ballot and has received enough signatures to qualify in 14 more. Kennedy has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission, claiming that the campaigns of President Biden and Donald Trump colluded to keep him out of the June 27 debate.

A source connected to the Biden campaign tells the Hill that Kennedy is "not making the stage" and that it will be a heavy blow to his longshot campaign. "Tanking poll numbers, cash flow, ballot access challenges—he's going to have a hard time making a case for electability with all of this combined as people are finally tuning in," the source says. Democratic strategist Michael Ceraso, however, says exclusion could be a boost for Kennedy "if his supporters believe he was denied entry to the debate due to unfair rules or the system working against him." (More Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stories.)