If an August 26 ruling by a Georgia administrative law judge stands, four independent presidential candidates, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr., will not appear on the ballot this fall in the Peach State.
Judge Michael Malihi made the ruling, which blocks ballot access to candidates Cornel West, Jill Stein of the Green Party, RFK Jr., and the Party for Socialism and Liberation’s candidate Claudia De la Cruz. Apparently, however, the final decision on the ballots is left to the secretary of state Brad Raffensperger.
The complaint was instigated by Democrats who have an interest in blocking candidates who could take votes away from their nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris. The blue team is worried because President Joe Biden only narrowly won the state in 2020 by fewer than 12,000 votes.
RFK Jr. has already suspended his presidential campaign and endorsed Republican nominee former President Donald Trump. The surprise move sparked unusually harsh backlash from Kennedy’s immediate family, most especially from his sister Kerry, who told reporters she was “disgusted” by her brother’s “obscene embrace” of Trump.
Secretary of State Raffensperger has a deadline of September 17 to decide the issue ahead of mailing out ballots to overseas residents and distantly stationed military servie members. His office said he is working on the review and hopes to make a decision as quickly as possible. If Raffensperger agrees with the judge, Georgia’s voters will only be able to choose among Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, and Libertarian candidate Chase Oliver.
Oliver is one of the Libertarians’ most controversial choices as he appears to endorse and support so-called “LGBTQ” policies that back the idea that people can change gender.
Democrats have filed challenges against third-party candidates in several states, and Georgia Republicans attempted to stop them and keep all candidates on the ballot. Administrative judge Malihi ruled based on a recent change to Georgia state law when it came to the candidacy of Kennedy, De la Cruz, and West. Apparently state law requires independent candidates to file to run under the names of the state’s 16 presidential electors, not under their own names. The law has required this since 2017, though it is unclear whether the legislature’s intent was to stymie third-party candidates because of bureaucratic mistakes.
Lawyers for the three candidates have shot back, arguing that Malihi incorrectly interpreted state law. All three candidates secured the minimum 7,500 signatures to qualify to run, and their campaigns say it is not fair to make them find another 7,500 signatures for 16 new, separate petitions, one for each of the state’s electors.
