Does RFK Jr.'s Independent Run Hurt Trump?

Yet another 3rd party candidate impacts a volatile race

For months now, Democrats have been raising the alarm about how third-party bids from No Labels and Green Party candidate Cornel West could tip a close election to Trump. According to Mediate, current Democratic candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to leave the Democratic Party and launch an independent bid for President. Kennedy Jr’s campaign released a truly bizarre video teasing an announcement.

Politico also reports that American Values 2024, a Super PAC supporting Kennedy Jr., has commissioned polling and is preparing for an independent bid.

While multiple polls demonstrated that the No Labels and West candidacies could hurt Biden, the initial speculation was that Kennedy would hurt Trump more. On its face, Kennedy Jr. has been running as MAGA’s favorite Democrat. He is a regular on Fox News and other MAGA media outlets, where he mostly attacks Biden, spouts anti-vax conspiracy theories, and toes the Trump line on Russia. If West pulls disaffected liberals from Biden, and the No Labels ticket is a place for Republicans and independents that disapprove of Biden, shouldn’t RFK Jr. take votes from Trump?