Rahna Epting: “With Kamala Harris on the rise and both Donald Trump and RFK Jr. cratering, this is a desperate play to shake up the race. RFK Jr.’s endorsement will not save him.”

Washington, D.C. – In response to news that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is officially dropping out of the presidential race and endorsing Donald Trump as mentioned in a Pennsylvania court filing, MoveOn Political Action Executive Director Rahna Epting released the following statement:

“We have always recognized what the RFK Jr. campaign was: a MAGA front designed to help Donald Trump win in November. With Kamala Harris on the rise and both Trump and RFK Jr. cratering, this is a desperate play to shake up the race. RFK Jr.’s endorsement will not save him.

“As RFK Jr. has been exposed for his extremist views, disturbing behavior, and allegations of sexual violence, his support has dried up, and he’s no longer useful to Trump in this race. That’s why JD Vance publicly asked him to drop out and why he’s been begging Trump for a job in exchange for leaving the race.

“RFK Jr. was never an outsider – he’s just another politician trying to trade on his family name for power. The country is better off without him in the race, but we must remain vigilant against right-wing-fueled third-party presidential candidates like Jill Stein and Cornel West, who are on the ballot in key swing states where the election will be decided. We cannot allow what happened in 2000 and 2016 to happen again in 2024.”

BACKGROUND

MoveOn has been sounding the alarm on the dangers of third-party candidates’ reckless, unstrategic campaigns. First, we partnered with Third Way and a cross-ideological coalition to expose and stop No Labels. Then, we shifted focus to third-party candidates RFK Jr., Jill Stein, and Cornel West.

• Over the past months, we have continued to spread the word that every vote for third-party candidates risks dividing the anti-Trump coalition and helps Trump’s reelection.

• We have exposed RFK Jr. as a conservative in sheep’s clothing who wants to ban abortion nationwide and help usher in Trump’s dangerous Project 2025 agenda.

  • Our efforts have been covered b The New York Times, NBC, the Associated Press, and Salon, among others.

• We will continue to hold third-party candidates like Jill Stein and Cornel West accountable because their candidacies continue to serve only Donald Trump, which is why they are being aided by MAGA operatives, donors, and lawyers.

• We will continue to work with a broad spectrum of pro-democracy groups to organize voters on the ground in key swing states such as Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Wisconsin, and more.

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