Significant changes are underway regarding ballots in battleground states following independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s decision to end his presidential campaign, which poses challenges for Vice President Kamala Harris as the election approaches.
In Nevada, a key battleground state, recent pre-dropout polls indicated a very close race with the Democrat leading former President Donald Trump by just under one percent, as found by FiveThirtyEight. With Kennedy previously attracting about 4% of voters mentioned in the early August polls, Harris faces a precarious situation that could result in her losing Nevada in the upcoming November elections. It’s important to note that polling groups have historically underestimated Trump’s actual support by several percentage points, a trend seen in both the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections.
Despite the shift in dynamics, voters in Nevada will still have a range of choices for president from various parties including the Libertarian, Independent American, and Green parties, as well as an option for “None of these Candidates.” This option has been notably favored by activists dissatisfied with Harris and President Biden due to the administration’s handling of the Israel-Palestine conflict, particularly during the recent tensions in Gaza. A demonstration at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago echoed this sentiment, with protestors pledging to abstain from voting altogether unless Harris alters the administration’s current policy. As activist and author Naomi Klein stated, “Protest at the polls is just as vital as protest in the streets.”
On Wednesday, it was reported that state election officials in Nevada have removed Kennedy’s name from the November ballot, further narrowing voters’ choices available for the presidency. After endorsing Trump following his exit from the race last Friday, Kennedy previously clashed with Democratic Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar over allegations that Kennedy did not properly adhere to state laws governing the submission of signatures on nomination petitions. A lawsuit initiated by two voters, including Aguilar, also aimed to keep Kennedy off the ballot.
It remains uncertain if Kennedy’s name will be excluded from ballots in other crucial battleground states, where he was impacting Harris’s slim lead earlier this month. Due to certain state regulations, Kennedy is unable to withdraw his name from ballots in Michigan and Wisconsin, jeopardizing Trump’s chances in states he narrowly won in 2016 but lost in 2020. With Trump’s transition team, Kennedy expressed his commitment to rallying support for Trump, stating, “I am actively reaching out to allies in swing states. In about 10 battleground states where my presence would be a spoiler, I’m going to remove my name, and I’ve already started that process. Our polling consistently indicated that staying on the ballot in these battleground states would effectively hand the election to the Democrats, with whom I disagree on critical issues.”
(FREE RED HAT: “Impeached. Arrested. Convicted. Shot. Still Standing”)
