Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is running for President of the United States as an independent. (document)
President Joe Biden and former US President Donald Trump are set to face off in the upcoming presidential election. But in addition to the two, a number of independent candidates are also in the running.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is an anti-vaccine activist who is now running as an independent after initially challenging President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination. He announced his candidacy for president last April.
Who is Robert F. Kennedy Jr.?
- Mr. Kennedy is the nephew of John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, and the son of Senator Robert F. Kennedy. It must be noted that Robert F. Kennedy served as Attorney General under Democratic President John F. Kennedy and later as a New York State Senator.
- Mr. Kennedy, who comes from a prominent political family, was “a lifelong Democrat” but became increasingly alienated in 2010 after watching the party drift away from its traditional values, according to Kennedy’s official website. On October 9, 2023, he announced his participation in the US election.
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. began his public service career in 1985 as an attorney for RiverKeeper, a nonprofit environmental organization.
- The 70-year-old eventually became one of the country’s most influential environmentalists. He also received Time magazine’s “Heroes of the Earth” award and the Satysky Peace Prize.
- Mr. Kennedy has worked as an environmental lawyer for decades and has become known since 2005 for promoting vaccine conspiracy theories. These theories link them to the development of autism.
- The New York Post, citing Mediaite, reported that Mr. Kennedy is expected to choose Nicole Shanahan, a California lawyer and entrepreneur, as his running mate. Notably, Nicole Shanahan is a Democratic donor and the ex-wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin. Shanahan also funded Kennedy’s expensive Super Bowl campaign ads, the report added.
