RFK Jr. defeated in initial round of Libertarian Party presidential nomination vote; Trump fails to submit qualifying paperwork

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was eliminated from contention for the Libertarian Party’s presidential nomination during the party’s convention Sunday. Kennedy, who spoke at the party’s national convention in Washington, DC, on Friday, was nominated by a delegate Sunday on the convention floor, where his candidacy was met with boos from other delegates.

In a surprise move earlier Sunday, Kennedy was put up for consideration as a nominee to represent the party in 2024, but he was eliminated in the first round of voting after receiving support from 19 delegates, or just 2.07%. Chase Oliver ultimately won the Libertarian presidential nomination Sunday night after seven rounds of voting at the convention.

Donald Trump was also nominated on the convention floor Sunday, but Libertarian Party Chair Angela McArdle ruled the former president was not qualified because he did not submit nominating papers. Trump spoke Saturday at the convention, where he was loudly and consistently booed, particularly when he asked attendees to “nominate me or at least vote for me.”

After Kennedy’s elimination, he urged Libertarians to back his campaign even though “we may not agree on every downstream issue.” Kennedy, a former Democrat, began courting Libertarian officials even before he left his party to run as an independent, meeting with McArdle in July and February to discuss their shared beliefs.

Kennedy’s support in national surveys has reached double digits – at 16% in a CNN poll conducted last month by SSRS – with strong indications that he is siphoning support from both Trump and President Joe Biden. As the threat has crystalized, so have Trump’s attacks on Kennedy. The former president now regularly attacks Kennedy in public remarks and on social media.