RFK Jr. forced to remain on ballot in key battleground state

Michigan‘s Supreme Court, which has a majority of Democrat-nominated justices, ruled on Monday that Robert Kennedy Jr. must appear on the battleground state’s ballot despite his efforts to get removed after ending his presidential campaign.

Kennedy, who endorsed former President Donald Trump after dropping out of the 2024 race last month, “has not shown an entitlement to this extraordinary relief, and we reverse” an appeals-level decision from last week, a majority order said.

The reversal could have significant consequences in a state where Trump won against Hillary Clinton by roughly 10,000 votes in the 2016 election and President Joe Biden prevailed against Trump by about 150,000 votes in the 2020 contest.

“This plainly has nothing to do with ballot or election integrity,” said Kennedy’s attorney Aaron Siri, according to the AP. “The aim is precisely the opposite — to have unwitting Michigan voters throw away their votes on a withdrawn candidate.”

Michigan’s secretary of state, a Democrat named Jocelyn Benson, refused to take Kennedy off the ballot, prompting a lawsuit. The Natural Law Party had nominated Kennedy and Benson’s office insisted minor party candidates “cannot withdraw.”