RFK Jr. makes Michigan ballot, where polls show independent voters favor him over Biden
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will be on the ballot in Michigan this November, likely making it harder for President Biden to keep the state in the Democratic column.
The Michigan Secretary of State’s Office confirmed to The Post Thursday that Kennedy will be listed as an option in the Nov. 5 election after he and his running mate, Nicole Shanahan, were nominated for president and vice president by the Natural Law Party.
Kennedy, 70, was polling at 13% in the Mitten State, according to a survey conducted earlier this month by Marketing Resource Group.
In a five-way matchup, the poll found former President Donald Trump received 37% support, President Biden got 34%, Green Party candidate Jill Stein got 2% and independent candidate Cornel West got 1%.
The survey also showed Kennedy edging Biden into third place among self-described independent voters, with Trump getting 33% of that demographic, RFK Jr. 22% and Biden getting 21%.
Kennedy also got 40% support among so-called “double-haters,” referring to potential voters who dislike both Biden and Trump. The 45th president was a distant second with 11% support in that demographic, followed by Biden with 10%
“He’s the most qualified candidate in the modern-day history of America,” Natural Law Party of Michigan chairman Doug Dern said in a statement. “We welcome Mr. Kennedy and Ms. Shanahan to the party.”
“Kennedy is good for Michigan,” said Kennedy 2024 western Michigan regional coordinator Bill Costantino. “As an environmental champion for more than 40 years, Kennedy will work to restore our Great Lakes region, which holds 20% of the world’s fresh water. He will ensure a thriving fishing economy and ecosystem for commercial fishermen and individual anglers.”
Kennedy was scheduled to mark his ballot success by hosting a comedy show Sunday night in the Detroit suburb of Royal Oak, with former “Saturday Night Live” stalwart Rob Schneider headlining.
Biden, who won Michigan by fewer than 155,000 votes out of more than 5.5 million ballots cast in 2020, already faced an uphill effort to retain the state’s 15 electoral votes after more than 100,000 people cast “uncommitted” ballots in the Feb. 27 Democratic primary to protest the president’s handling of the war in the Middle East.
Kennedy is aiming to get on the ballot in all 50 states — a difficult task given the varying qualifications needed for each contest.
The independent’s team maintains he’s already on the ballot in Utah and has enough signatures to qualify in Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire and North Carolina.
“We have the field teams, volunteers, legal teams, paid circulators, supporters, and strategists ready to get the job done,” said campaign press secretary Stefanie Spear. “We are exceeding all our benchmarks and will announce new states each week.”
RFK Jr. has run a campaign focused on his anti-COVID vaccine, anti-war and environmental policies, while hitting both Biden and Trump.
Both top party candidates have had their supporters attack Kennedy — with Trump’s super PAC Make American Great Again Inc. launching a “Radical F-ing Kennedy” website Monday and more than a dozen Kennedy family members endorsing Biden on Thursday.
