The 2024 independent presidential candidate said that three states—New Hampshire, Maine, and North Dakota—are refusing to send the campaign ballot petitions.
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that he has met the signature requirement to appear on Utah’s 2024 general election presidential ballot, the first step toward the daunting goal of qualifying for the ballot in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
State Elections Director Ryan Cowley confirmed that Mr. Kennedy collected the required number of at least 1,000 verified signatures. Utah is the first state where Mr. Kennedy has submitted signatures.
The candidate told reporters at a news conference at the Utah state Capitol on Jan. 3 that he’s confident that he’ll meet the access requirements for independents and third-party candidates, even as three states—New Hampshire, Maine, and North Dakota—are refusing to send campaign ballot petitions.
“We will figure it out. We have a litigation team and expect to litigate in a lot of states,” Mr. Kennedy said. “These are roadblocks but none of them are insurmountable. We will be on the ballot in 50 states and the District of Columbia.”
Utah had presented the first deadline until Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, a Republican, announced that she would extend the deadline for independent presidential candidates to gain ballot access to March 5.
Mr. Kennedy filed a lawsuit against Utah officials on Dec. 4, 2023, citing an “unconstitutional early filing deadline” that prevented ballot access for independent presidential candidates.
The legal action challenged Utah’s Jan. 8 deadline requiring independent presidential candidates to collect and verify 1,000 signatures from qualified voters.
Mr. Kennedy argued in the lawsuit that “the current deadline is the earliest deadline ever sought to be imposed on independent presidential candidates in the modern era. No federal court has ever upheld a January deadline [for independent presidential candidates].”
The lawsuit will continue to advance through the courts, even with the decision to extend the deadline. In the same court filing, Ms. Henderson asked that a hearing take place the week of Jan. 15.
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