On Tuesday, independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that he had selected attorney Nicole Shanahan to be his nominee for vice president. Shanahan, a 38-year-old native of Oakland, California, is best known for having been married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin; the two divorced in 2022 amid rumors that she had an affair with Elon Musk. Both Shanahan and Musk have denied the allegation.
In picking Shanahan, Kennedy is signaling his desire to broaden his appeal on the left. Shanahan is the president of the Bia-Echo Foundation, a left-leaning grant organization that focuses on, among other things, “addressing climate change and ‘global climate equality’ with regenerative agriculture.” It should come as no surprise that she describes herself as “progressive through and through.” She donated to several of the Democratic Party’s 2020 presidential candidates, including Joe Biden.
In her speech after the announcement, Shanahan announced that she was leaving the Democratic Party, arguing: “[It] is supposed to be the party of compassion. It is supposed to be the party of free speech, and most importantly, the party of the middle class and the American dream.” “While I know many Democrats still abide by those values,” she added, “I do believe they’ve lost their way in their leadership.”
Why Shanahan?
Shanahan is an unconventional pick, even for a gadfly-esque candidate like Kennedy. One could forgive even a zealous consumer of political news for greeting the announcement with a “who?” After all, Kennedy was reportedly considering some big names. Former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura and former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard would have both brought experience in elected office to the ticket. NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers had star power and name recognition. There is, however, a method to Kennedy’s madness. Shanahan can provide something in abundance that the others cannot: money.
Shanahan has already put that money where her mouth is. The Super Bowl commercial by the Kennedy campaign that deliberately echoed the famous 1960 ad by his uncle was paid for by her. But the first hurdle for Kennedy isn’t convincing Americans to cast their ballots for him; it’s getting his name on those ballots in the first place.
In about half of states, presidential candidates must have a named vice-presidential nominee to appear on the ballot. Further requirements, which vary greatly by state, include the arduous task of gathering a sufficient number of petition signatures. Sometimes it is even necessary to go to court to contest state rulings. According to ABC News, Kennedy has already successfully sued Utah to push back its early filing deadline. He’s threatening to do the same to Nevada over a ballot access dispute.
Kennedy has officially made the ballot only in Utah. He appears to have met the requirements in New Hampshire, Hawaii, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, and South Carolina as well. Obtaining ballot access in all 50 states — an accomplishment that previous credible third-party bids, such as Ross Perot’s in 1992 and 1996, were able to manage — is reportedly a priority for the Kennedy campaign. Enter Shanahan, who pledged in her speech to “spend the next seven months getting Bobby Kennedy on every ballot in America.”
That the Kennedy ticket won’t win likely goes without saying. But if he is able to take his case to voters everywhere, it could decide who does.
