Court ruling clears RFK, Jr. for New Jersey ballot

(The Center Square) — A New Jersey judge has ruled that independent presidential hopeful Robert Kennedy Jr. can appear on the November ballot despite claims that he is disqualified under the state's 'sore loser' law.

The ruling by state Administrative Law Judge Ernest Bongiovanni determined that Kennedy didn't file a nominating petition for the Democratic primary, so the law that bars individuals from running as non-party candidates in the same year they fail to win a major party nomination doesn't apply.

In his ruling, he said the plaintiff's claims that the law disqualifies Kennedy are "overbroad and would require clear evidence to determine that the speeches, raising of campaign funds, and publishing of press releases — all activities conducted nationwide and not for the specific benefit of New Jersey democratic primary election votes — established respondents as primary elections candidates in New Jersey.”

"Thus, the fact that Kennedy’s camp operated as Democrats for a few months in 2023, that is no proof that even intended to, much less actually participated in New Jersey’s primaries, nor as New Jersey write-in candidates," he wrote in the ruling. "More significantly, respondents never filed nominating petitions to be primary candidates for the office of President and Vice President for the Democratic Primary election."

New Jersey's 'sore loser law' prohibits candidates who have been "a member of a political party at any time after the immediately preceding primary election for the general election," or who "unsuccessfully sought the nomination of a political party to such position in the primary election." A lawsuit filed in June by New Jersey election attorney Scott Salmon, a Democrat, alleged that the law disqualifies Kennedy from appearing on the state's ballot.

Salmon criticized the ruling and said he plans to appeal to New Jersey Secretary of State Tahesha Way, who has until Aug. 9 to certify independent candidates for the state's general election. He is also considering filing a court appeal.

"Instead of just ruling that RFK didn't "unsuccessfully seek" the nomination, he ruled that the only way the Sore Loser Law would apply is if RFK actually submitted a nominating petition for the primary election," Salmon posted on X in response to the judge's ruling. "If that's true, then there is no point to the law ... because (it) expressly forbids independents who have previously submitted primary nominating petitions."

Kennedy wasn't on New Jersey's Democratic ballot, but he received hundreds of write-in votes from supporters in the state's June 4 primary and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars from New Jersey donors in his bid to unseat then-incumbent President Joe Biden. Biden has since dropped out of the race.

Democrats have filed similar challenges in other states, including North Carolina, Delaware, Nevada and New York, to keep Kennedy off the November ballot amid concerns that he would siphon away votes from Vice President Kamala Harris, with polls showing her neck-and-neck with former President Donald Trump in the presidential race.

Kennedy, the son of Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy, announced in October that he was ending his campaign as a Democrat and launching an independent bid for the White House.

He vowed to get on the ballot in every state by the end of July, but so far, he's only made it on the ballot in 16 states, including Maine, Utah, Michigan, Delaware, Oklahoma and Tennessee. His campaign says he has collected enough signatures to get on the ballot in 23 other states.