In his quest to make himself a viable Presidential candidate, lawyer and activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is going to greater lengths than most.
Kennedy has filed paperwork in multiple states to create new political parties that he would represent on the Presidential ballot.
The threshold for required signatures needed to appear on the ballot is lower for candidates representing a recognized political party than for running truly independently.
As a result, Kennedy is looking to create the “We the People” party in California, Delaware, Hawaii, Mississippi and North Carolina.
He also filed paperwork in Texas to create the “Texas Independent Party.”
Kennedy’s campaign said that creating and representing a political party would result in a reduction of about 330,000 signatures needed per state to get on the ballot.
Two states however do require a certain number of voters to be registered under a party before it is recognized as a viable political organization. Delaware will require 770 voters to register as “We the People” party members, while California will require about 75,000 such registrations.
So far Kennedy has only reached the signature threshold in one state – Utah – to appear on the Presidential ballot, according to the New York Times.
Kennedy’s Presidential run began with him challenging incumbent President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination. He switched to being an independent candidate in October 2023.