Tuesday, August 27, 2024

Learn More about WPBS Passport! Click Here

HomeVideoRobert F. Kennedy Jr. suspends presidential campaign, supports Trump

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspends presidential campaign, supports Trump

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Friday that he is suspending his independent presidential bid and throwing his support behind former President Donald Trump.

During a news conference in Arizona, Kennedy said that he’s not officially ending his campaign, only removing his name from ballots in battleground states.

“Polling consistently showed that by staying on the ballot in the battleground states, I would likely hand the election over to the Democrats,” he said.

He encouraged supporters in blue and red states to still vote for him, since he says, it wouldn’t impact the results.

Kennedy listed various reasons why he cannot back the Democratic Party, saying he disagrees with their stance on chronic illness, free speech and censorship.

“These are the principal causes that persuaded me to leave the Democratic Party and run as an independent, and now to throw my support at President Trump,” he said.

In a statement, members of the Kennedy family called RFK’s decision to back Trump a “betrayal of the values that our father and our family hold most dear.”

Watch PBS News for daily, breaking and live news, plus special coverage. We are home to PBS News Hour, ranked the most credible and objective TV news show.

Subscribe for exclusive content in our newsletters: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/subscribe
PBS News podcasts: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/podcasts
Stream your PBS favorites with the PBS app: https://to.pbs.org/2Jb8twG
Find more from PBS News at https://www.pbs.org/newshour
Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2HfsCD6

Follow us:
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@pbsnews
X: http://www.twitter.com/newshour
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/newshour
Facebook: http://www.pbs.org/newshour