A Michigan judge ruled Tuesday that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. must remain on the ballot for the November presidential election.
Kennedy his campaign suspended and endorsed former President Donald Trump in August. Since then, he has tried to withdraw his name in states — such as Michigan — where the race could be close, while trying to stay on the ballot in states where he is unlikely to make a difference between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Kennedy filed a lawsuit Friday in the Michigan Court of Claims against Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson seeking to have his name withdrawn. Michigan election officials previously rejected Kennedy’s notice of withdrawal.
In a message on X Tuesday, Benson said that under state law, candidates who are nominated and accept the nomination of a minor party “may not withdraw.”
Kennedy argued in the lawsuit that his notice of withdrawal was timely and that the electorate’s votes could be “diminished and nullified” if he remained on the ballot. He filed a similar lawsuit Friday in North Carolina, where he is seeking to have his name removed from the ballot.
Judge Christopher Yates of the Michigan Court of Appeals concluded that the Secretary of State had properly denied Kennedy’s request to be removed from the ballot.
“Elections are not mere games, and the Secretary of State (SOS) is under no obligation to honor the whims of candidates for public office,” Yates said in his opinion and order. “Months ago, Plaintiff Robert F. Kennedy Jr. obtained the nomination of the Natural Law Party to represent that party as its candidate for President of the United States in 2024. But then Plaintiff changed his mind and sought to have his name removed from the ballot for the 2024 general election. The SOS rejected that change of heart at the last minute, so Plaintiff went to court at the last minute to seek immediate relief on the basis that the SOS violated Michigan law by denying his request to be removed from the ballot.”
Last week, another Michigan Court of Appeals judge ruled that Cornel West must remain on the ballota view welcomed by West’s campaign.
Read the full review and order below:
