Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. approached Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign last week with a proposal to join her administration if she won the presidency, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
In exchange, he would have endorsed Harris and end his hopeless third-candidate campaign, the Washington Post reported.
However, Harris and her team have yet to respond or express interest in this offer. One source indicated that Harris’ campaign is not inclined to engage with Kennedy, citing his previous efforts to seek a position with Donald Trump in exchange for his endorsement.
RFK Jr. denied the revelations on X: “I have no plans to endorse Kamala Harris for President. I do have a plan to defeat her”, he wrote, and explained how different the Democrats of today are compared to the Kennedy era.
In a statement to CBS News, Stefanie Spear, a spokesperson for Kennedy, confirmed that he is open to discussions with leaders from both parties about a potential unity government.
Despite this, Kennedy has publicly dismissed the idea of endorsing Harris. On Thursday, he posted on X (formerly Twitter) that he plans to challenge Harris, criticizing her Democratic Party as “unrecognizable” to his family’s values and accusing her of leading a party responsible for “censorship, lockdowns, and medical coercion.” He also took Republican lines of attack, accusing Harris of being “afraid to debate” and unable to handle unscripted interviews.
The Washington Post first reported the attempted meeting. Kennedy, who is actively working to secure ballot access in numerous states and has several upcoming campaign events, told the Post that he believes not meeting with Harris was a strategic error. “I think it is a strategic mistake for them. That’s my perspective,” Kennedy said. “I think they ought to be looking at every opportunity. I think it is going to be a very close race.”
This outreach to Harris follows a July meeting between Kennedy and former President Donald Trump at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. After the meeting, Kennedy stated on social media that the discussion focused on national unity and expressed a desire to discuss similar topics with Democratic leaders, though he emphasized he was not dropping out of the race.
Kennedy is currently on the ballot in a growing number of states, including Alaska, Colorado, Michigan, and Texas, among others, totaling just over 200 electoral votes. He also appears on the ballot in California as the nominee of the American Independent Party and in Hawaii under his We the People ticket. However, New York has denied Kennedy ballot access due to issues with his residency claim.
