PHOENIX (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspended his independent presidential campaign on Friday and supported Donald Trumpa late restructuring of the presidential race that could give the former president modest support among Kennedy’s supporters.
Kennedy said his internal polls showed that his entry into the race would hurt Trump and help Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, but recent public polls have provided no clear indication that he would have an undue influence on support for either major party candidate.
Kennedy cited freedom of speech, the war in Ukraine and “a war against our children” as reasons why he would try to remove his name from the ballot in swing states.
“These are the main reasons that led me to leave the Democratic Party, run as an independent and now support President Trump,” Kennedy said.
However, he made clear he would not formally withdraw his candidacy, saying his supporters could still support him in most states where they were unlikely to be able to influence the outcome. Kennedy took steps late this week to withdraw his candidacy in at least two states, Arizona and Pennsylvania, but in the battleground states of Michigan, Nevada and Wisconsin, election officials said it was too late for him to remove his name from the ballot even if he wanted to.
Kennedy said his actions were the result of conversations with Trump in recent weeks. He described their alliance as a “unity party,” an agreement that would “allow us to disagree publicly and privately and seriously.” Kennedy suggested Trump had offered him a job if he returned to the White House, but neither he nor Trump provided details.
The announcement ended days of speculation and sparked much confusion and contradiction among Kennedy’s advisers and allies – the symbolic conclusion of a hopeless election campaign.
Shortly before his speech in Phoenix, his campaign declared in a Pennsylvania court document on Friday that he would support Trump for president. However, a spokesman for Kennedy said the court document was an error and the lawyer who drafted it said he would correct it. Kennedy took the stage moments later, expressed his displeasure with the Democratic Party, the media and political institutions and praised Trump. He spoke for nearly 20 minutes before explicitly declaring that he supported Trump.
During the campaign in Las Vegas, Trump said it was a “great honor” to receive Kennedy’s endorsement and avoided a question about what positions he was considering for him.
“He’s just a respected person,” Trump said. “Not everyone agrees with everything he says, but that’s true for everyone.”
Hours after Kennedy’s speech in Phoenix, Trump planned to hold a rally in neighboring Glendale. Trump’s campaign team hinted that he would be joined by “a special guest,” but neither team said whether Kennedy would be that guest.
A year ago, some would have thought it unthinkable that a member of arguably the most famous family in Democratic politics would work with Trump to keep a Democrat out of the White House. In recent months, Kennedy accused Trump of betraying his supporters, while Trump criticized Kennedy as “the most radical left-wing candidate in the race.”
Five members of Kennedy’s family issued a statement on Friday calling his support for Trump a “sad end to a sad story” and reiterating their support for Harris.
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“Our brother Bobby’s decision to endorse Trump today is a betrayal of the values that are most important to our father and our family,” said his sister Kerry Kennedy in a statement. posted on X.
Kennedy Jr., the son of the late Attorney General and Senator Robert Kennedy and nephew of President John F. Kennedy, acknowledged that his decision to support Trump had caused tension with his immediate family. He is married to actress Cheryl Hines, who wrote on X that she deeply respected her husband’s decision to drop out but did not comment on supporting Trump.
“This decision is painful for me because it will cause difficulties for my wife, my children and my friends,” Kennedy said. “But I am certain that this is my destiny. And that certainty gives me inner peace, even in stormy times.”
In a statement, Harris campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon appealed to Kennedy’s supporters who are “fed up with Donald Trump and are looking for a new way forward.”
“To deliver for working people and those who feel left behind, we need a leader who will fight for you, not just for himself, and who will bring us together, not tear us apart,” she said. “Vice President Harris wants to earn your support.”
The Kennedy and Trump campaigns have increased their compliments to each other in recent weeks. Both campaigns have for months accused Democrats of using the legal system for their own benefit. And both have publicly indicated that they would be open to joining forces with the common goal of limiting Harris’ chances.
Kennedy’s running mate Nicole Shanahan this week toyed with the idea that Kennedy could join Trump’s administration as health secretary.
“I think Bobby would be great in that role,” Shanahan said in a podcast interview. “I fully support that.”
Before Kennedy’s appearance in Phoenix, 38-year-old Casey Westerman said she trusted Kennedy’s judgment and had planned to vote for him, but she would support Trump if Kennedy told him he supported Trump.
“My decision would really depend on who he thinks is best suited to govern this country,” said Westerman, who wore a trucker hat emblazoned with the words “Kennedy 2024” and voted for Trump in the last two presidential elections.
Kennedy initially entered the 2024 presidential race as a Democrat but left the party last fall to run as an independent. He built an unusually strong base for a third-party candidacy, fueled in part by anti-establishment voters and vaccine skeptics who have followed his anti-vaccine work since the COVID-19 pandemic. But he has since faced tight campaign finances and mounting legal challenges.
At Trump’s event in Las Vegas, 49-year-old Alida Roberts said Kennedy’s support for Trump spoke volumes about the current state of the Democratic Party.
“It shows that he doesn’t trust what’s going on and that it’s not the party he grew up in,” Roberts said.
Roberts, who voted for Trump twice, said she was relieved and excited about the endorsement. She had been “wavering” between the two candidates, she said, but she knew Kennedy’s campaign was facing headwinds too strong to overcome.
Current surveys Kennedy’s support was in the mid-single digits, and it is unclear whether he would reach even that level in a general election.
There is some evidence that Kennedy staying in the race would hurt Trump more than Harris. According to a July AP-NORC poll, Republicans were significantly more likely to have a favorable opinion of Kennedy than Democrats. And those who had a favorable impression of Kennedy were significantly more likely to have a favorable opinion of Trump (52%) than of Harris (37%).
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Associated Press writers Jill Colvin in New York, Michelle L. Price in Phoenix, Rio Yamat in Las Vegas, Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Meg Kinnard in Chicago and Linley Sanders in Washington contributed to this report.
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