Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is taking legal action against the North Carolina State Board of Elections in a final endeavor to have his name taken off the state’s ballot for the upcoming 2024 presidential election. The lawsuit was filed in Wake County Superior Court and argues that denying his request to withdraw as a third-party presidential candidate violates state election laws and his freedom of speech. Kennedy is facing imminent ballot deadlines and states that he has no choice but to seek immediate relief from the court.
Following his decision to suspend his campaign and endorse former President Donald Trump in August, Kennedy has been trying to remove his name from ballots in states where the race might be closely contested, such as North Carolina. However, he aimed to remain on the ballot in states like New York, where his candidacy is not expected to impact the competition between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Unless the court intervenes, Kennedy’s name will appear on the North Carolina ballot in November. Despite the efforts from Kennedy’s side, the North Carolina board’s three Democrats voted against the request to remove Kennedy and his running mate, Nicole Shanahan, from the “We The People” party line. The majority of Democrats argued that it was too late as the majority of counties in the state had already begun printing ballots, with the first batch scheduled to be sent out by September 6.
The Board Executive Director, Karen Brinson Bell, pointed out that the main vendor for most counties had already printed over 1.7 million ballots, and redoing the process would incur significant costs, potentially amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Brinson Bell emphasized the complexity of the ballot printing process, stating that it is not as simple as making copies on a Xerox machine. However, the two Republican members of the board disagreed, suggesting that the board could extend the statutory deadline for absentee ballots.