Robert F. Kennedy Jr. issues Tennessee and Alaska ballot access updates after Nevada typo causes snag
Nashville, Tennessee - Independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Thursday his campaign has gathered the signatures required to appear on the presidential ballot in Alaska and Tennessee.
The Kennedy campaign said it had gathered 1,025 signatures in Tennessee and 5,935 in Alaska – well over the required amount in each state.
"I am beyond grateful to be part of history today in Nashville, Tennessee," said the campaign's Tennessee volunteer lead Tommy Aceto, a veterans' rights and mental health care advocate. "Ensuring Mr. Kennedy gets on every state's ballot is important to me because I believe in the concept of freedom, which I fought for and many of my brothers died for."
Alaska State Campaign Chair Megs Testarmata said: "Our effort spanned the far reaches of this enormous state from Ketchikan in the south to Barrow on the Arctic Ocean and many large and smaller communities in between. I am thrilled to be a part of history by ensuring Alaskans have an independent option this November."
The updates mark the latest successes in a push by Kennedy and his running mate, Nicole Shanahan, to gain ballot access all across the nation come November.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. refiles Nevada ballot access petition
Kennedy and Shanahan are officially on the ballot in California, Delaware, Hawaii, Michigan, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, and Utah.
On top of Alaska and Tennessee, the campaign has collected the required number of voter signatures in Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, and Ohio.
On Tuesday, the campaign refiled its Nevada petition due to a misspelling of "United States," the Nevada Independent reported.
Campaign attorney Paul Rossi explained in an email to state officials: "we do not want ballot access to be rejected because of an typo." Ironically, his message contained yet another typo.
Kennedy's first petition was deemed invalid because he had not listed a running mate. The campaign has since filed suit, saying Nevada Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar initially told the candidate he did not have to list his VP pick.
Last week, the Kennedy campaign saw its second Nevada petition (including the typo) approved. Aguilar reportedly said he didn't know that refiling to correct the spelling error was necessary but was "glad they’re being proactive."
Cover photo: REUTERS