Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the independent presidential candidate, is on the brink of meeting the requirements to qualify for the June 27 CNN presidential debate.
His participation in the debate could significantly change the state of the presidential race, as RFK already appears to be pulling large amounts of voters from both major candidates, despite his limited mainstream coverage. Joining the debate could legitimize his candidacy and increase support by sharing his agenda with new audiences.
To earn a spot in the debate, RFK must have ballot access in enough state ballots to allow him to hypothetically reach 270 electoral votes if he were to win every state.
Since he is a third-party candidate, to appear on the ballot, he must petition and apply for access in each state separately. According to his website, he currently has ballot access in 18 states that have a total value of 272 electoral college votes.
However, at least 10 of the 18 states where Kennedy claims to be on the ballot have not officially confirmed that he has made their ballot.
It’s worth noting that the ballot access requirement is being criticized because the debate occurs before Joe Biden and Donald Trump will be officially selected as their parties’ nominees. As presumptive nominees, both candidates cannot officially secure ballot access for 270 electoral votes by the June 20 deadline.
RFK’s campaign filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission alleging that this technicality violated federal campaign laws. The complaint asks the FEC to suspend the CNN debate until the alleged violations are addressed.
Traditionally, presidential debates occur in the fall after the nominating conventions. The CNN debate will be the earliest televised presidential debate in a U.S. election cycle. It will also be the first presidential debate not proctored by the bipartisan Commission on Presidential Debates since its inception in 1988.
A lawsuit jeopardizing RFK’s ability to qualify for the debate emerged last Thursday. Two New Yorkers supported by the Democratic National Committee sued RFK’s campaign for allegedly invalid petition signatures. The lawsuit claims that the vast majority of his signatures are missing required information such as dates or addresses.
Without ballot access in New York, which the campaign claims to have, RFK will lose 28 electoral votes and fall well below the required threshold.
Another requirement is that candidates receive at least 15 percent of the vote in four different national surveys that meet CNN’s standards. The polls approved must be conducted by CNN, ABC News, CBS News, Fox News, Marquette University Law School, Monmouth University, NBC News, the New York Times/Siena College, NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist College, Quinnipiac University, the Wall Street Journal, or the Washington Post.
Currently, RFK has only fulfilled this requirement in three approved polls: one conducted by the Marquette Law School, another by CNN, and a third by Quinnipiac University.
The deadline to qualify for the debate is June 20.
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