Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced he submitted the required signatures to put him on Minnesota’s ballot and surpass eligibility for 270 electoral votes, pushing him another step closer to qualifying for June’s presidential debate.
A press release from the campaign confirmed Kennedy submitted 3,300 signatures in Minnesota. Kennedy now claims ballot access in 19 states with 278 electoral votes. Half of the states where he has submitted the necessary signatures for ballot access have not yet verified his submission.
The independent candidate now has one marker to reach before making it to the June 27 debate: reaching 15% in four qualifying national polls.
CNN, the network holding the first presidential debate, announced two criteria candidates must meet to qualify for the debates.
“Candidates must also appear on a sufficient number of state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote threshold to win the presidency and receive at least 15% in four separate national polls of registered or likely voters that meet CNN’s standards for reporting,” the network said.
Kennedy is now on the ballot in nine states: Utah, Michigan, California, Delaware, Oklahoma, Hawaii, Texas, South Carolina, and Florida.
The campaign states it has collected enough signatures for ballot access in 10 other states: New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Idaho, Nebraska, Iowa, Ohio, New Jersey, New York, and Minnesota.
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Kennedy’s Minnesota milestone comes as he fights to access Nevada’s ballot and faces challenges to his ballot petition in New York. He is suing Nevada’s secretary of state over his interpretation of state laws regarding ballot access. In the Empire State, a super PAC backing President Joe Biden claims Kennedy’s campaign lied about its ballot petition.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the Kennedy campaign for comment.
