The controversial Robert F. Kennedy Jr, nephew of the assassinated American President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, announced on Monday October 9 that he was changing his label and becoming an independent candidate for the 2024 presidential election.
A lawyer specializing in environmental issues, he has been known since 2005 for spreading conspiracy theories about vaccines, notably linking autism to one of their components. The sixty-year-old first declared himself a presidential candidate in April, under the banner of the Democratic Party, which would have seen him face President Biden in the primaries.
“I wish to declare my independence: from the Democratic Party, as from all other parties”, he finally declared during a rally Monday in Philadelphia. By changing his label, the candidate with an ambiguous political position will find himself on the ballot alongside the Democratic and Republican contenders – well on his way to being Joe Biden and Donald Trump, according to the latest polls.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr could thus siphon precious votes from candidates of both parties, with most elections being played out in a pinch. He is the son of the former Democratic Minister of Justice and presidential candidate Robert Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1968, but also the nephew of “JFK”, killed five years earlier. In a joint statement, several of those close to him denounced his decision to change his label, calling it “dangerous”.