Effectively, that was quick.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s short-lived try and develop into the Libertarian nominee for president flamed out even quicker than it began, as he acquired assist from a paltry 19 delegates, or 2.07%, on the social gathering’s DC conference Sunday, sending him dwelling within the first spherical.
Earlier within the day, Kennedy, 70, was unexpectedly nominated from the conference flooring by a delegate, the announcement swiftly drawing waves of boos from the group in what turned a harbinger of his embarrassing displaying.
On Friday, he delivered a gloves-off speech to conference delegates wherein he ripped former President Donald Trump, 77, for his response to the COVID-19 pandemic and failing to pardon WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange or anti-surveillance whistleblower Edward Snowden throughout his administration.
Trump’s title was additionally put forth on the conference flooring to be the social gathering’s normal bearer, however the notion was rapidly extinguished by Libertarian Occasion Chair Angela McArdle, who declared him ineligible as a result of he didn’t submit nominating papers.
Trump spoke earlier than the raucous delegates Saturday afternoon, enduring boos combined with “We wish Trump” chants, which reached a zenith when he urged the group to appoint him.
Because the jeers and cheers rang out, the previous president tagged his request for the nomination with, “Solely if you wish to win. Perhaps you don’t wish to win.”
He went on to obtain six delegate votes as a write-in candidate. One delegate, in a snide reference to Trump’s ongoing NYC hush cash trial, wrote in “Stormy Daniels,” the grownup movie star whose alleged trysts with the ex-commander in chief have been the catalyst for this spherical of his authorized woes.
Underneath conference guidelines, candidates who acquired lower than 5% of the vote have been knocked out of rivalry within the first spherical.
Kennedy had been assembly with Libertarian Occasion officers since final summer season, partially hoping to trip their poll coattails in November. The eventual Libertarian candidate might be on the poll in 38 states, in comparison with simply six for Kennedy thus far.
Kennedy, a former Democrat who left the social gathering in October to hunt the nomination for president as an impartial, acquired 14% assist in a latest Quinnipiac College nationwide ballot of registered voters this week.
Nonetheless, that very same ballot confirmed his supporters have been way more more likely to abandon him than every other candidate between now and Election Day.
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