Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s campaign is at a crossroads and is considering whether to exit the race now… and endorse former President Donald Trump, according to an interview with Kennedy’s running mate, Nicole Shanahan.
In an interview on the “Impact Theory” podcast, Shanahan outlined two options the campaign is weighing.
“There’s two options that we’re looking at,” she said. “One is staying in, forming that new party, but we run the risk of a Kamala Harris and Walz presidency because we draw votes from Trump, or we draw somehow more votes from Trump.”
“Or we walk away right now and join forces with Donald Trump and you know, we walk away from that and explain to our base why we’re making this decision,” she said, and acknowledged, “Not easy, not an easy decision.”
Shanahan expressed concerns about being a “spoiler candidate” to Trump.
“I did not put in tens of millions of dollars to be a spoiler candidate. I put in tens of millions of dollars to win, to fix this country, to do the right thing,” she explained.
The potential shift comes as recent polls show Kennedy’s support declining.
A Fox News poll indicated Kennedy’s backing has dropped from 15% in November 2023 to 6% in the latest survey. Notably, more Trump supporters (9%) than Harris supporters (7%) backed Kennedy when given the option.
Shanahan accused the Democratic National Committee (DNC) of undermining their campaign.
“The DNC made that impossible for us,” she claimed. “They have banned us, shadow-banned us, kept us off stages, manipulated polls, used law-fare against us, sued us in every possible state — they’ve even planted insiders into our campaign to disrupt it and to create actual legal issues for us.”
In response, DNC communications adviser Lis Smith fired back, “From the beginning of this race, we’ve said that RFK Jr. is nothing more than a spoiler for Donald Trump, and we’re glad that his running mate is finally admitting it.”
The Kennedy campaign’s financial situation may be influencing these considerations. According to the latest FEC filings, the campaign raised $5.6 million last month while spending $7 million, and has not held a public event in over a month.
Kennedy himself has not directly commented on Shanahan’s statements.
His campaign referred to a recent tweet where he stated, “As always, I am willing to talk with leaders of any political party to further the goals I have served for 40 years in my career and in this campaign.”
This development comes just days before Vice President Kamala Harris is set to formally accept the Democratic presidential nomination in Chicago. The potential exit of Kennedy from the race could significantly impact the dynamics of the 2024 presidential election, potentially altering the balance between Harris and Trump in key swing states.
Take a look —
JUST IN: Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s running mate Nicole Shanahan says the Kennedy campaign is considering dropping out of the race and endorsing Trump.
The comments came during a podcast appearance on Tom Bilyeu's Impact Theory.
Shanahan said there are currently two options:
1.… pic.twitter.com/P3VwvuxKIq
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) August 20, 2024