Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Enters US Presidential Race

By Staff, Agencies

Environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to run for US president in 2024 as a Democrat.

The filing was confirmed Wednesday by his campaign treasurer, John E. Sullivan.

The 69-year-old is the son of former New York senator, US attorney general and assassinated 1968 presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of late President John F. Kennedy.

Kennedy Jr. is a longtime vaccine skeptic. He has promoted discredited claims linking vaccines and autism and founded the anti-vaccine organization Children’s Health Defense. He has also railed against the coronavirus vaccine and has criticized the federal government’s handling of the pandemic.

Kennedy had tweeted last month that he was considering a presidential run.

“If it looks like I can raise the money and mobilize enough people to win, I’ll jump in the race,” he said.

As an environmental lawyer, Kennedy worked with a group that led the Hudson River cleanup. He also worked for the Natural Resources Defense Council and co-founded an environmental law firm.

The 2024 Democratic presidential race is only beginning to take shape, with President Joe Biden expected to announce his bid for a second term. Author Marianne Williamson launched a second long-shot campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination last month.

On the Republican side, former President Donald Trump jump-started the race for the party nomination, announcing his third bid for the White House last year. Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy are also in the race, while other well-known contenders, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former Vice President Mike Pence, are weighing bids of their own.