The New York Times reports: Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who is running for president as an independent, announced on Tuesday that he had filed paperwork to create his own political party in six states — an effort to get his name on the ballot with fewer voter signatures than would be required for an unaffiliated candidate. Election offices in North Carolina and Hawaii confirmed that they had received the campaign’s applications for a new party, “We the People,” as did the Texas secretary of state’s office for the “Texas Independent Party.” Officials in California and Delaware did not respond to inquiries. A spokeswoman for Mississippi’s secretary of state said Mr. Kennedy’s team had contacted the office, but a filing could not be immediately confirmed because of a weather-related disruption. Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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NBC News reports: Allies of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. are taking a major step toward putting him on the presidential ballot in several key battleground states, hiring multiple signature-gathering vendors to begin the massive undertaking of circulating petitions to submit on the independent candidate’s behalf. American Values 2024, the super PAC supporting Kennedy, formally contracted three firms to collect voter signatures in Arizona, Georgia and Michigan, according to Tony Lyons, a co-founder of the group. Workers hired by the firms are set to begin collecting signatures in Georgia on Jan. 20, with the efforts in Arizona and Michigan slated to commence soon after. Lyons says it will finance and lead the signature-gathering charge for Kennedy in 10 of the states with the largest threshold of voter petitions required. Kennedy’s campaign committee has not hired paid signature gatherers, instead working to build a volunteer apparatus to execute their petition effort. “Right now, we’re relying on our volunteers and feel we have a big enough base to get the petitions we need in each state,” said Stefanie Spear, the spokesperson for Kennedy’s campaign. “If we do need paid petitioners, we’ll absolutely engage in contracts.” In most states, petition requirements placed on independent candidates for president are significantly steeper than individuals running with one of the major political parties. For example, in Arizona, a Democratic or Republican candidate for president must only submit 500 qualifying signatures.  Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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CBS 17 reports: Presidential hopeful Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who’s running as an independent, stopped in Raleigh Friday night.  He’s hoping to get on the ballot in North Carolina. The NC Board of Elections said he will need a little over 83,000 signatures to make that happen.   Kennedy told a packed room at the Marrott Raleigh he has over 50,000 volunteers and more coming to help him meet his goal.        If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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KX News reports: He’s the oldest son of Senator Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated while campaigning for president in 1968. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is running for president this 2024 election season. But, here in North Dakota, he is at risk of not even making it on the ballot sheet. “Three states are refusing to send us ballot petitions and those are Maine, New Hampshire, and North Dakota. This is something that would never happen to a presidential campaign from the major political parties. And one of the side issues that I think has been raised throughout this campaign in many, many ways is the undemocratic lock that the major political parties have on this process, “said Robert F. Kennedy Jr. However, with a glimmer of hope, Jamestown’s Christian Cairy is leading a grassroots campaign to get Robert F. Kennedy Junior’s name on the North Dakota list. “Those Independent voters, I mean, I tend to vote more so conservative, and I didn’t have an option other than a Republican candidate to actually kind of fulfill that need. I think gone are the days that need to be like one issue voter voting and stuff like that. There needs to be a better cohesive approach,” said Cairy. “It important to get him on the ballot anywhere in the state because any president or any aspiring persons who has the means to run for president should be able to run for president,” said Cairy. Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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The Hill reports: Democrats fear Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. will cause significant damage to President Biden in this year’s election — assuming the independent candidate can get on enough ballots. Kennedy, the controversial scion of one of the most famous families in American politics, switched from Democrat to independent last year and has polled comfortably in many surveys. But while Democrats and Republicans alike generally believe he poses more of a threat to the unpopular Biden than to GOP front-runner former President Trump, it’s not yet known how many Americans will see Kennedy’s name when they go to fill out their ballots this year.  “It’s unclear how serious his campaign is going to be. Where’s he going to be on the ballot?” said Tim Miller, a Republican strategist and prominent Trump critic. “Are they the types of states that have more MAGA-type voters or the types of states that have more minority voters?” Both parties are warily watching Kennedy just days away from the election’s first contests, as more state ballot deadlines approach. So far, the cycle’s biggest dark horse has made the ballot in Utah, with North Carolina to come in several weeks. Campaigns on both sides of the aisle have taken his candidacy more seriously in recent weeks as he maintains steady polling standing. Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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KSL reports: Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has gained access to the ballot in Utah, he announced during a press conference at the state Capitol Wednesday. Kennedy thanked dozens of volunteers in Utah for braving temperatures and sacrificing time during the holiday to collect signatures from 14 different counties in Utah. "Utah has once again shown that it is the pioneer state," he said. "It is the first of 50 states and the District of Columbia where we are going to register and get on the ballot." Joe Cook, a Lehi resident and Brigham Young University alum who led the signature gathering efforts in Utah, said the effort grew from only a dozen volunteers to around 100. "Many voters who signed the petitions were thrilled to hear a message that unites us rather than divides us," Cook said. Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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CBS News reports: Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has met the signature requirement to qualify to be on Utah's 2024 general election presidential ballot, the Salt Lake County clerk's office confirmed to CBS News Thursday, pushing the independent candidate one step closer to getting on the ballot in that state.  Kennedy's presidential effort met the 1,000-signature threshold needed, Salt Lake County's voter services manager Ron Buckley confirmed. The exact number of signatures submitted was not provided. Once Kennedy officially files, Utah would mark the first state's ballot for which he has qualified.  Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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The Associated Press reports: Some voted for Donald Trump, others for Joe Biden. A few had never wanted anything to do with politics before they heard Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. on a podcast or YouTube video. Lined up outside a Phoenix wedding hall tucked between a freeway, a railroad track and a U-Haul rental center, the hundreds of people who turned out Wednesday to hear Kennedy speak shared little in common ideologically. What united them was a deep-seated distrust — of the media, of corporations and especially of the government — and a belief that Kennedy is the only person in politics willing to tell them the truth. “I like that he talks to us like adults,” said Gilbert Limon, a 48-year-old pharmacist from Phoenix. “He tells you the majority of what you need to know. Whereas I feel like (other politicians) just give you bits and pieces to try to fit their agenda. I’ve had enough of that.” Voters are not enthusiastic about a Biden-Trump rematch, and alternatives like Kennedy or the No Labels third-party movement, which would typically be longshots, see an opening. Kennedy’s appearance in a 2024 battleground state highlights how he could influence the election in ways that are tough to predict. Allies of both Trump and Biden have expressed concerns that Kennedy’s independent bid could pull votes from their candidate in next year’s expected general election rematch. Kennedy made the stop in Phoenix as part of his laborious push to get access to the 2024 presidential ballot as an independent candidate, which he figures will require him to collect at least a million signatures across the country. Aides mingled in the crowd, filling up his petitions to qualify in Arizona. Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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The State reports: On Thanksgiving, Sam Sipe brought up a topic that usually is a no-no for dinner during gatherings on the fourth Thursday of November. She brought up politics. Specifically, she made her pitch to a handful of friends and family members to sign a petition to help get Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. on South Carolina’s 2024 presidential ballot. “When you talk about Kennedy and explain Kennedy’s positions to people, they’re much more likely to at least want to give Kennedy a chance,” Sipe said. “This is what this is about. We’re kind of saying, let’s give someone else a chance rather than the duopoly. You’re not throwing away your primary vote (by giving) a signature to put him on the ballot. You’re just giving someone a chance.” Sipe is part of a group of volunteers in South Carolina working to gather the necessary 10,000 valid and active voter signatures for Kennedy to secure a spot on the state’s 2024 presidential ballot. Gathering the signatures is a daunting task, and the Kennedy campaign — which has polled at 22% in national surveys of a three-candidate race — is relying solely on the work of volunteers, not paid canvassers. “We’re building an army. And you know, we’re gonna get on the ballot,” Kennedy told reporters last month. “We’re gonna use volunteers to get on the ballot, and then we’re gonna have an army in place in November, like no other campaign. We’re gonna have a lot of people that are highly motivated on the ground.” Kennedy has said he is confident he’ll be on the ballot in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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Politico reports: The super PAC supporting Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential bid is narrowing its ballot access campaign focus to seven states — including crucial battlegrounds that will determine the outcome of the presidential election. American Values 2024 will now prioritize helping to get Kennedy on the ballot in Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, New York and Texas, according to plans first shared with POLITICO. Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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Deseret reports: Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s third request for Secret Service protection has been denied, according to a letter obtained by the Deseret News. The letter, signed by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, says that USSS protection for Kennedy is “not warranted.” The letter’s veracity was confirmed Friday night by the Kennedy campaign. Kennedy has submitted three requests for Secret Service protection since launching his campaign in April, each with the same result.  Federal law authorizes Secret Service protection for “major” presidential and vice presidential candidates. The DHS secretary is given authority to determine who qualifies as a “major” candidate, in consultation with the top congressional leaders in the House and Senate.  Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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12News KPNX reports: Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a Democrat-turned-independent presidential candidate, held a campaign rally in Phoenix Wednesday night. He spoke to hundreds of voters at the Legends Event Center near 43rd Avenue and Camelback. Some voters there said they're not satisfied with President Biden or former President Trump and want an alternative choice. "I'm always looking for a left-of-center, intelligent candidate and he seems to be that," said Mariee Hayden of Phoenix. “Always pro-choice, but I'm interested to learn what he has to offer in general." Lisette Valenzuela of Phoenix said she doesn't align with the Democrat or Republican parties. “I'm tired of having to choose between the lesser of two evils," Valenzuela said. Kennedy believes he can win Arizona's independent voting bloc. “They like the message to end the vitriol, to end the poison and the polarization and to start focusing on the values that we have in common," Kennedy said. Kennedy is currently collecting signatures, vying for a spot on Arizona's ballot. He needs signatures from three percent of Arizona's registered voters by August of 2024. Read the full article here. If you resonate with this message please subscribe to our newsletter to learn more.

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