Albany, New York - Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says he has qualified to appear on the New York ballot in his 2024 bid for the White House.

The Kennedy campaign said it had submitted 135,519 petition signatures in New York – far more than the required amount to obtain ballot access.

"The scale of this grassroots effort has been monumental and proves the strength of our ground game in a way many claimed was impossible," Will Boothby, the Kennedy campaign's northeast regional field director, said in a press release.

"In six weeks, the campaign has held two rallies, a college bus tour, and hundreds of local events. More than 900 volunteers representing all 63 counties stepped up for this historic effort," he continued.

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"The State of New York has stacked the deck against independent candidates in every way possible, combining the worst aspects of ballot access restrictions into one amalgamation designed to stop any candidate from achieving what we have achieved today."

Shortly before disgraced ex-New York Governor Andrew Cuomo left office, he increased the number of signatures third parties and Independent candidates need to appear on the ballot from 15,000 to 45,000 – with only six weeks for collection.

RFK Jr. and his VP candidate, Nicole Shanahan, have already gained ballot access in Utah, Michigan, California, Delaware, Oklahoma, Hawaii, and Texas.

The Kennedy campaign says they have also collected the required number of signatures in New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Idaho, Nebraska, Iowa, Ohio, and New Jersey.

The general election for president will take place on November 5, 2024.