The Supreme Court shot down Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s attempt to withdraw his name from the ballots in Michigan and Wisconsin on Tuesday.
Kennedy sought an emergency decision from the court to instruct election officials in the battleground states to exclude his name after he dropped out of the race and endorsed Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Kennedy’s legal team contended that Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and the Wisconsin Election Commission infringed on his First Amendment rights by forcing him to remain on the ballot.
Benson and the Wisconsin Election Commission maintained that removing Kennedy would be untimely and put election workers under a crunch.
“By recertifying the ballot to include Kennedy’s name as a presidential candidate, the Secretary has compelled his speech in violation of the First Amendment,” his attorneys stated about Benson.
“A review of the aforementioned facts clearly demonstrates that Secretary Benson has compelled Mr. Kennedy’s speech and, therefore, violated his Constitutional rights.”
This First Amendment claim was echoed in a dissent from Justices Chad Readler and Amul Thapar during Kennedy’s hearing at the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.
“This case presents a question of exceptional importance: Does forcing a person onto the ballot compel his speech in violation of the First Amendment? The repercussions of that question are enormous,” Thapar noted.
“If a candidate can’t stop his name from appearing on the ballot, could battleground states put President Joe Biden back on their ballots?”
The voting details of the justices weren’t disclosed, but Justice Neil Gorsuch briefly dissented regarding Kennedy’s Michigan case, signalling his agreement with Thapar and Readler.
After the verdict, Kennedy took to X and accused election officials in Wisconsin and Michigan of political maneuvering by keeping him on the ballot.
“The Supreme Court has unfortunately today sided with the Secretary of State of Michigan and Wisconsin, both Democrats, to undermine election integrity and leave my name on the ballot in both those states,” he remarked. “It is a purely political move in the hope that folks who would have otherwise voted for Trump will throw away their vote by voting for me instead.”
With less than one week remaining until Election Day, it’s crunch time, people. Every dollar you contribute will continue building momentum to get President Trump back in the White House and me to D.C. 🙏🇺🇸
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— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) October 30, 2024
“Don’t let them undermine this election. Don’t be fooled. I am off the ballot in every other state I have sought to get off of other than Michigan and Wisconsin,” Kennedy added.
“So, if you are in Michigan or Wisconsin, please make sure to vote for Donald Trump — DO NOT VOTE FOR ME. Together we will Make America Healthy Again!”
