Current:Home > ContactRFK Jr.'s campaign files petitions to get on presidential ballot in swing-state Pennsylvania -Secure Growth Academy
RFK Jr.'s campaign files petitions to get on presidential ballot in swing-state Pennsylvania
View
Date:2025-04-15 05:18:09
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. filed paperwork Thursday to get on the ballot for the November election in swing-state Pennsylvania, the state’s election office said.
Kennedy’s filing comes six weeks before the Aug. 1 deadline, after which the paperwork can be challenged in court.
The campaigns of both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump fear that Kennedy could play a spoiler role in what’s anticipated to be a close election, especially in Pennsylvania, the nation’s fifth-most populous state.
To qualify for the ballot in Pennsylvania, Kennedy must file 5,000 signatures of registered voters.
With its 19 electoral votes, Pennsylvania is a top-tier prize that has swung between the parties in the last two presidential elections. Both were closely contested: In 2016, Trump won Pennsylvania by 44,000 votes over Democrat Hillary Clinton, and four years later Biden beat Trump by 81,000 votes.
Libertarian Jo Jorgensen was on the ballot in 2020 and collected just over 79,000 votes, while three minor-party candidates on the ballot in 2016 — the Libertarian Party’s Gary Johnson, the Green Party’s Jill Stein and the Constitution Party’s Darrell Castle — and got nearly 190,000 votes combined.
Kennedy’s petitions could challenged in court by the two major parties, and both Trump’s and Biden’s campaigns have sought to portray him as an adversary. Legal challenges must be filed no later than Aug. 8.
What to know about the 2024 Election
- Democracy: American democracy has overcome big stress tests since 2020. More challenges lie ahead in 2024.
- AP’s Role: The Associated Press is the most trusted source of information on election night, with a history of accuracy dating to 1848. Learn more.
- Read the latest: Follow AP’s complete coverage of this year’s election.
Kennedy, an environmental lawyer and prominent anti-vaccine activist, abandoned his Democratic primary challenge to Biden last year and began campaigning as an independent.
Among the obstacles he faces is a requirement to secure ballot access state by state. That requires him to collect millions of signatures that must be verified by election officials before his candidacy is approved.
Kennedy’s campaign has previously said he has satisfied the requirements to appear on the ballot in 22 states, with a combined 310 electoral votes, though not all have affirmed that his name will be listed.
___
Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2024 election at https://apnews.com/hub/election-2024.
veryGood! (9)
Related
- Finally, good retirement news! Southwest pilots' plan is a bright spot, experts say
- Kentucky’s Democratic Governor Steers Clear of a Climate Agenda in His Bid to Fend Off a Mitch McConnell Protege
- Study finds more people are moving into high flood zones, increasing risk of water disasters
- Biden presses student debt relief as payments resume after the coronavirus pandemic pause
- North Carolina justices rule for restaurants in COVID
- David Beckham’s Reaction to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce Is Total Goals
- Scott Disick Praises Real Life Princess Kylie Jenner's Paris Fashion Week Look
- Lottery club members claim $1 million prize from Powerball jackpot just in the nick of time
- Can Bill Belichick turn North Carolina into a winner? At 72, he's chasing one last high
- Child care programs just lost thousands of federal dollars. Families and providers scramble to cope
Ranking
- The company planning a successor to Concorde makes its first supersonic test
- Charity Lawson Reacts After DWTS Partner Artem Chigvintsev Tests Positive for COVID
- San Francisco woman seriously injured after hit-and-run accident pushes her under a driverless car
- MacArthur 'genius' makes magical art that conjures up her Afro-Cuban roots
- DoorDash steps up driver ID checks after traffic safety complaints
- It's dumb to blame Taylor Swift for Kansas City's struggles against the Jets
- Who voted to oust McCarthy as speaker? See the final tally of the House roll call
- A 13-foot, cat-eating albino python is terrorizing an Oklahoma City community
Recommendation
Google unveils a quantum chip. Could it help unlock the universe's deepest secrets?
Canada’s House of Commons elects first Black speaker
'Mean Girls' day: Paramount releases entire movie on TikTok for fans
A 13-foot, cat-eating albino python is terrorizing an Oklahoma City community
Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
Detroit-area mayor indicted on bribery charge alleging he took $50,000 to facilitate property sale
Applebee's Dollaritas return: $1 margarita drinks back for limited time after 3-year hiatus
Point of no return: Pope challenges leaders at UN talks to slow global warming before it’s too late