Robert F. Kennedy Jr. runs for president to challenge Biden in 2024
Misty Severi
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Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Democratic nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, declared his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for president on Wednesday via filings with the Federal Election Commission.
The 69-year-old’s bid is considered a long shot in an effort to replace President Joe Biden in 2024. Kennedy Jr. is the second Democratic candidate to announce a bid for the White House. Author Marianne Williamson is also running in the Democratic race. Biden has not yet declared that he is seeking reelection.
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The decision by Kennedy Jr., the son of former Attorney General and New York Sen. Robert Kennedy, comes a month after he launched a fundraising campaign on social media to help him decide whether to run for president.
“If it looks like I can raise the money and mobilize enough people to win, I’ll jump in the race,” Kennedy Jr. tweeted last month.
“If I run, my top priority will be to end the corrupt merger between state and corporate power that has ruined our economy, shattered the middle class, polluted our landscapes and waters, poisoned our children, and robbed us of our values and freedoms. Together we can restore America’s democracy,” he said.
Kennedy Jr. has not issued a statement about his bid.
Kennedy Jr. is considered an anti-vaccine activist, having established an anti-vaccine charity, the Children’s Health Defense, which excelled during the COVID-19 pandemic. His activism against vaccines predates the pandemic, going back at least 15 years. Before his activism, Kennedy Jr. was a bestselling author and environmental lawyer.
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His activism has earned condemnation from his own family, including from younger sister Terry. Health officials have labeled his rhetoric “misleading” and “dangerous.” Kennedy Jr. has also been critical of infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci. Kennedy Jr. released a book in 2021 titled The Real Anthony Fauci. In it, he accuses Fauci of assisting in “a historic coup d’etat against Western democracy,” according to the Associated Press.
Kennedy Jr. is the third of Robert Kennedy’s 11 children. Robert Kennedy was assassinated on June 6, 1968, in Los Angeles.