(The Center Square) – Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dropped his presidential bid Friday to endorse Republican nominee Donald Trump in the Nov. 5 election.
Kennedy, his voice hoarse, called it quits during a speech Friday in Phoenix.
“In an honest system, I believe I would have won the election,” he said.
Kennedy said Friday that the Democratic party had changed significantly since he attended his first Democratic National Convention at the age of 6. He said it was no longer the party of his father and uncle.
“It had become the party of war, censorship, corruption, big pharma, big tech, big ag and big money,” Kennedy said.
He blamed “shadowy DNC operatives” for fighting his campaign at every turn in legal battles challenging the signatures he turned in to get on the ballot in state after state. He also blamed media companies for failing to do their jobs.
He said Democrats abandoned democracy. He said the Democratic primary was a sham to protect President Joe Biden. Kennedy criticized Vice President Kamala Harris for not appearing in an interview or having an unscripted discussion for 35 days and said it was “profoundly undemocratic.”
Kennedy said after Harris became the presidential candidate, the Democratic National Committee and “its media organs” engineered a surge of popularity for Harris “based upon nothing.”
“No policies, no interviews, no debates, only smoke and mirrors, and balloons,” he said.
Kennedy said he had no path to victory and would suspend his campaign. He said his name would remain on the ballot in most states. He also encouraged supporters to vote for him in both red and blue states. However, he said he would remove his name from the ballot in battleground states.
The removal of Kennedy from the ballots of the battleground states may impact the election. Real Clear Politics reported Aug. 21 that polling showed that Kennedy drew enough votes away from Trump to give Harris the lead in Arizona and Pennsylvania.
But it was mixed results in other battleground states. Real Clear Politics stated Harris benefited from having Kennedy on the ballot in Michigan and Wisconsin. And in Nevada and Georgia, Trump benefited from having Kennedy on the ballot.
Kennedy also endorsed Trump.
On Tuesday, Trump said he’d “love” Kennedy’s endorsement and that he’d be open to having Kennedy in his administration.
