MADISON — Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who suspended his independent presidential campaign in August, campaigned for former President Donald Trump in Madison on Tuesday, just hours after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected Kennedy’s lawsuit seeking to remove his name from the ballot in battlegrounds Wisconsin and Michigan.
The court's decision follows decisions against Kennedy by the Wisconsin Supreme Court and Wisconsin Elections Commission.
“They want me on the ballot to trick people into voting for me instead of voting for President Trump. And what I’m saying to you is do not fall for that ploy,” Kennedy said. “I don’t want your vote. I want you to vote for Donald Trump.”
Kennedy’s visit to the liberal stronghold of Madison one week before Election Day comes as both Trump and Kennedy have signaled that Kennedy would have a prominent role in a second Trump administration.
“Kennedy’s gonna be on our ballot, but if I vote for Kennedy, it’s not going to get him into the White House to help America,” said Sondee Grande, who helped organize support for Kennedy’s campaign in Wisconsin.
Grande said she plans to vote for Trump, even though it was a “hard pill to swallow” when Kennedy first endorsed him.
Polling suggests that Kennedy’s presence on the ballot could be a “spoiler” for Trump in Wisconsin. A Marquette University Law School Poll from last month shows Kennedy is supported by 3% of likely voters in the battleground state. Four of the last six presidential elections in Wisconsin were won by less than 1% of the vote.
However, Susan Peterson of Janesville, who gathered nomination signatures for Kennedy, said she’s hopeful that Kennedy supporters will fall in line behind Trump by Election Day.
“I’ve kept in touch with the volunteers in Wisconsin, and they’re all encouraging each other to vote for Trump and to stand behind Mr. Kennedy because that’s what he’s asking us to do,” she said.
