Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s campaign has announced that he is considering taking legal action against Nevada regarding his petition to be listed as an independent candidate on the ballot. This comes after a CBS News report highlighted a potential issue with the validity of the signatures he collected. The concern is that his petition did not include a vice presidential candidate, which could render the signatures invalid.
The Kennedy campaign argued that the Democratic Party had created a new rule to nullify his Nevada signatures. However, it should be noted that Nevada has had a long-standing requirement, dating back to 1993, for a vice presidential candidate to be mentioned in an independent candidate’s petition.
According to Paul Rossi, the Kennedy ballot access attorney, the DNC Goon Squad and the Nevada Secretary of State’s office are creating a new requirement for the petition in Nevada, even though there is no legal basis for it. Rossi states that the Nevada statute does not mandate the inclusion of the VP on the petition, and furthermore, the petition itself does not even provide a space for the VP’s name.
“This scheme concocted by the Nevada Secretary of State must be halted by a federal judge,” declared Rossi. “The Kennedy campaign plans to depose the Secretary of State in order to uncover the precise White House or DNC official responsible for this corrupt attempt.”
Rossi also shared an email exchange on November 14th between the campaign and the secretary of state’s office. In the email, the office mistakenly stated that the petition did not need to include a named running mate.
The Kennedy campaign’s ballot access manager reached out to inquire if the vice presidential candidate needed to be included on the petition forms. In response, an office staffer directed them to refer to the petition format on page 5 of the state’s petition guide, clarifying that it was not necessary. Additionally, Rossi provided a link to the Jan. 9 correspondence from the secretary of state’s office, which confirmed the approval of Kennedy’s petition.
In contrast to Nevada statutes, which require independent candidates to designate a nominee for Vice President in their petition of candidacy.
Documents obtained from the Nevada office unveiled that Kennedy violated the rules by solely naming himself, without a running mate, on his candidate petition. This action could potentially render the signatures collected in the state null and void.
The staff at the secretary of state’s office admitted that they had provided Kennedy with incorrect information.
The office stated to CBS News that earlier today, they became aware of an incident where a Secretary of State employee gave incorrect guidance to an independent presidential campaign. They acknowledged that this was a mistake and assured that it will be dealt with appropriately. The office clarified that the error and the subsequent statutory guidance were not intended to favor or harm any political party or candidate for office.
The office, however, emphasized that Kennedy’s campaign is responsible for adhering to the statute, even though they made an error.
According to the office, when a government agency provides a vague or inaccurate response to a question from a member of the public, Nevada courts have made it clear that the agency cannot comply with the employee’s statements if doing so would contradict the law.
Kennedy’s presence on the ballot is currently limited to Utah. However, his campaign claims to have gathered sufficient signatures to meet the ballot requirements in various other states. In a scheduled event in Oakland, Kennedy intends to announce his choice for a running mate on Tuesday.
