Supporters of independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. filed political party paperwork in six states — California, Delaware, Hawaii, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Texas. In the first five states listed, the “We the People” political party was formed and in Texas, the “Texas Independent Party” was created.
The campaign launched a Ballot Access Headquarters page to keep media and supporters up-to-date on the campaign’s operations to get RFK Jr. on the ballot in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Kennedy is already on the ballot in Utah, the only state in which the signature submission deadline has now passed.
“Democracy is a lot more than voting,” Kennedy said. “I’m inspired by how enthusiastic people are to collect signatures, cast ballots, create new political parties, and attend rallies. That kind of energy is what will get us onto the ballot in every state and fuel our voter registration and GOTV operation as we head toward election day.”
With these political party filings, the number of signatures needed to get Kennedy on the ballot in every state has been reduced by about 330,000, a third of the total needed nationwide.
Many states offer independent presidential candidates two methods of achieving ballot access — as an individual candidate or as the nominee of a new party. The two processes often require different numbers of signatures. In most states, the individual candidate process requires fewer signatures. However, in some states, the party ballot access requires fewer signatures and is therefore the most direct path to ballot access in those states. Once a new party achieves ballot access in this way, they can nominate the candidate of their choosing, in this case, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
Due to idiosyncratic state regulations, two of the new state parties must achieve this ballot access by registering voters to the party in place of gathering signatures. In California, the party must register 75,000 people to “We the People,” a process that voters can complete online at the California Secretary of State’s website. In Delaware, the party will get ballot access by registering about 760 people.
Three months ago, Kennedy returned to Philadelphia, the birthplace of the United States, and declared his independence from the “bankrupt two-party system.” He did so with the National Constitution Center behind him and the words “We the People” etched into the building by his side.
“We the people” are the first three words of the U.S. Constitution. These words symbolize that our government draws its power from the people that it was created to serve.
On Oct. 9, Kennedy said, “Like the Founding Fathers declared their independence from the crown more than two centuries ago, today we declare our independence from the corrupting influence of Wall Street and corporate donors that have rigged our economy for the few at the expense of the many.”
Learn more at Kennedy24.com. Visit our press page here.
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