Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dropped out of the Libertarian Party nomination race early in the first round of voting on Sunday, ending speculation that he might gain the endorsement of a third party before the November election.
Kennedy received the support of just 19 delegates, or about 2 percent of the vote, in his party’s nominating process at the Washington convention. He spoke at the convention on Friday despite saying last month that he would not seek the party’s nomination.
Delegates who nominated Kennedy from the floor on Sunday were met with loud boos from the crowd.
In his speech on Friday, Kennedy sparred with former President Trump, who also attended the convention the following day.
“I think he had the right instincts when he took office,” Kennedy said of Trump, “and was very reluctant to impose lockdowns in the beginning, and then he caved in to the bureaucrats. He caved, and many of our most basic rights disappeared almost overnight.”
“President Trump authorized health officials to mandate scientifically unfounded social distancing measures that undermine our First Amendment right to free assembly. We can no longer peacefully assemble,” he later added.
Trump fared even worse in the nomination process, receiving just two roll-up votes despite repeatedly seeking the nomination from the Libertarian Party, which deemed him ineligible for not filing the proper paperwork, forcing a roll-up campaign.
In a stab at Trump, one of the representatives named Stormy Daniels, the adult film star at the center of a hush-money criminal trial against the former president that is due to be decided by a jury this week.
Kennedy, who has strong support among centrists and has pitched himself as a dissident who is skeptical of traditional government, is widely seen as a weak candidate to challenge President Trump and President Biden, but recent polls suggest he could undermine Trump in November’s election.
Trump, a former Democrat, has about 8 percent approval in the Hill/Decision Desk polling average, giving him a lead over Biden by just over 1 percentage point.
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