Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is running as an independent presidential candidate, is expected to miss out on next week’s first presidential debate as he faces a Thursday deadline to qualify. File Photo by Jemal Countess/UPI | License Photo
June 20 (UPI) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is running as an independent presidential candidate, appears to be headed for a sideline seat next week when President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump take to the stage for the first of two debates.
Kennedy, 70, has not qualified to join the Democratic and Republican candidates for the CNN presidential debate set for June 27, as he faces a Thursday deadline.
While Kennedy has polled over 15% in three approved national polls, CNN is requiring four national polls. Kennedy has also failed to secure himself on enough state ballots to earn 270 delegates by Thursday’s deadline.
“Though not impossible in Kennedy’s case, it is less likely that candidates other than Biden and Trump will meet those requirements,” CNN wrote in a memo over the weekend.
Kennedy filed a complaint last month with the Federal Election Commission accusing CNN of requiring “different criteria” for his debate qualification, compared to Biden or Trump. The FEC has yet to rule on the complaint.
“The Federal Election Commission has made clear that the phrase ‘presumptive nominee’ is not in the FEC’s debate regulation,” Kennedy campaign press secretary Stefanie Spear said in a statement.
“Failure to use objective criteria renders the debate a campaign contribution, subject to strict donation limits, therefore CNN is violating federal law,” Spear added.
Kennedy has claimed Biden and Trump “are trying to exclude me from their debate because they are afraid I would win.”
The next presidential debate, which Kennedy could qualify for and will be hosted by ABC, is scheduled for September.
Last month, Kennedy’s campaign announced the independent candidate had qualified for the ballot in California, the state with the most electoral college votes.
In addition to California, Kennedy is officially on the ballot in Utah, Michigan, Delaware, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Florida, Hawaii and Tennessee.
His campaign says he also has collected enough signatures for ballots in New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Idaho, Nebraska, Texas, Mississippi, Iowa, Ohio, New Jersey, New York, Florida, Minnesota, Alaska and Washington.
Despite making the ballot in nine states, Kennedy would be currently eligible for far short of the 270 electoral votes needed to win in November.
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