Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. complains about ballot access laws

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. published an op-ed on Substack on how ballot access laws for independent and third-party candidates are among the worst forms of voter suppression in America today.

Kennedy, who abandoned his quest for the Democratic Party nomination after being confronted by cheating that was intended to obstruct his challenge to President Joe Biden, explains how the current ballot access system for independent candidates amounts to deliberate and arbitrary suppression of the democratic process.

Three Democratic presidential candidates challenging President Biden for the 2024 nomination–Congressman Dean Phillips, author Marianne Williamson, and political commentator Cenk Uygur— have lodged complaints about canceled primary elections in Florida, North Carolina, and Tennessee and other obstacles.

Several states, including the early primary states of New Hampshire, South Carolina, Arkansas, and Nevada, have rejected Uygur’s application to appear on their ballots.

Uygur, who was born in Turkey, said officials were treating naturalized citizens as “second-class.” He has argued that the 14th Amendment of the Constitution makes him eligible to run for president.

Uygur, the co-creator of the online news and commentary show “The Young Turks,” announced in October he was challenging Biden for the Democratic nomination. He previously made a failed bid for a California congressional seat.

Phillips, Williamson, and Uygur each say that Biden could not win the election, an assertion that numerous polls appear to confirm.

Kennedy details the egregious hurdles an independent campaign must overcome, including collecting more than 1 million valid pen-and-paper signatures, deciphering arcane petitioning rules that are different in each state, and defending its petitions against the inevitable onslaught of litigation by Democrat and Republican lawyers.

“Extreme ballot access restrictions for independent and third-party candidates are among the worst forms of voter suppression in America today,” said Kennedy. “They artificially prop up the two-party duopoly, even as 63% of American adults agree that the Republican and Democratic parties do such a poor job of representing the American people that another choice is needed.”

“This gallimaufry of ballot access requirements entrenches the power of the two major parties, who would rather force my independent campaign to spend millions of dollars getting on the ballot than face us in a fair contest of ideas,” said Kennedy.

“Fortunately, the Kennedy campaign has a massive base of grassroots supporters and a robust legal team that will overcome these restrictions to get RFK Jr.’s name on the ballot in all 50 states and the District of Columbia,” said Press Secretary Stefanie Spear.

The campaign has already secured its first legal victory against the state of Utah, which agreed to move its unduly ballot access deadline for independent candidates from Jan. 8, 2024, to March 5, 2024.

“There is no legitimate reason why petitioning alone should be kept in the analog world, requiring pen-and-paper signatures which then have to be validated by state employees in a ridiculous process that could easily be brought online and made much simpler,” said Kennedy. “In a democracy, the people are supposed to decide who gets into office, not state officials and party operatives who look for ways to prevent popular candidates from getting on the ballot.”

Kennedy concludes his Substack by saying, “To fix our broken ballot access system, the American people will need to pressure state lawmakers to build a better, more democratic process. When I am elected as America’s first independent president since George Washington, I will lead the way.”