Robert F Kennedy Jr roasted as he sues Nevada secretary of state Francisco Aguilar over ballot access

CARSON CITY, NEVADA: Independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr has launched a lawsuit against Nevada’s Secretary of State, Francisco Aguilar, demanding the validation of signatures on his ballot petitions despite prior official rejection.

Kennedy, running as an independent candidate for the 2024 presidential election, filed his lawsuit in the US District Court for the District of Nevada on June 3, as reported by The Hill.

Robert F Kennedy Jr argues Nevada’s policies regarding independent candidates are 'ambiguous'

The core of the dispute centers on guidance initially given by the Nevada Secretary of State’s office in January. At that time, Kennedy’s campaign was informed they did not need to select a running mate before gathering the necessary 10,000 signatures to appear on the ballot.

However, in March, the office reversed its stance, citing an error in their previous guidance and clarified that a running mate must be named before signature collection.

"This is a clear case for the federal court to apply the doctrine of equitable estoppel to prohibit the Secretary of State from changing his mind after providing binding statutory instruction upon which the campaign properly relied to our detriment," stated Paul Rossi, senior counsel for Kennedy’s campaign.

"The court must prohibit what was either rank incompetence or partisan political gamesmanship by the Secretary from invalidating petition signatures afforded the highest First Amendment protection by the United States Supreme Court," Rossi added.

The Nevada Secretary of State’s office defended its position, stating it had sent out the correct guidance to all independent candidates well ahead of the submission deadline.

"Nevada has a rich history of independent and third-party candidates for office. Each of those candidates managed to attain ballot access by following the law. We look forward to seeing Mr Kennedy’s team in court," said Aguilar.

Kennedy’s lawsuit argues that Nevada’s statutes regarding whether independent candidates must name their running mate in advance are "ambiguous and conflicting."

His legal team contends that requiring independent candidates to name a vice-presidential pick before major party candidates is a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.

Kennedy, who announced tech attorney and entrepreneur Nicole Shanahan as his running mate in late March, is pushing to secure his place on as many state ballots as possible. His campaign has successfully qualified for the ballot in eight states and claims to have enough signatures for ballot access in another nine states, including Nevada.

Robert F Kennedy Jr's legal action against Nevada Secretary of State sparks fury online

Kennedy’s legal action against Nevada’s Secretary of State sparked a significant backlash online. One Facebook user said, "Take a hint loser!!!!" while another remarked, "See, this guy is exactly like Trump!!! Even though he's already been told that the signatures are invalid by the elected officer who validates such business, the loon decides to sue and go to court."

The criticisms continued with a third user stating, "Gosh, another corrupt old white man..." and a fourth user commenting, "This is your brain. This is your brain on worms." A fifth user quipped, "The brain worm strikes again," while another harshly suggested, "Jr, give it up!! Go back to your Heroin and Brain worms!!"

Yet another user mocked, "You can actually hear the circus music coming from his empty head when he speaks," and an eighth remarked, "The people who verified the signatures were probably vaccinated and they tainted the results according to Kennedy the clown."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.