Ballot Access Breaking News: Kennedy Submits Enough Signatures to Qualify for the Ballot in Alaska and Tennessee

By Leah Watson, Breaking News Reporter, The Kennedy Beacon

On June 13, independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that his campaign had submitted enough signatures for ballot access in both Alaska and Tennessee. 

In Alaska, Kennedy submitted 5,935 signatures, almost double the 3,614 minimum requirement, according to Kennedy’s press announcement. In Tennessee, Kennedy submitted 1,025 signatures, almost quadruple the minimum. 

Kennedy did not align with an independent party to get on the ballot in Alaska, but on April 4 he did appear on KSRM’s Talk of the Kenai with host Bob Bird, chairman of the Alaskan Independence Party.

During the radio interview, Kennedy spoke about his time spent in Homer, Alaska, focusing on environmental efforts with the Cook Inletkeeper program. Kennedy advocated for clean water and protected the Cook Inlet watershed from toxic pollution and climate change. He told Bird about how he has fished and camped in Alaska’s Petroleum Reserve and has hiked in the Brooks Range. Kennedy also spoke about his efforts to preserve the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from oil development.

“It’s a great thought that you know something about our state because so many people do not and they try to dictate policy to us,” said Bird.

Gaining these two states is another milestone in Kennedy’s quest to appear on the ballot in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Kennedy is officially on the ballot in eight states: Utah, Michigan, California, Delaware, Oklahoma, Hawaii, Texas, and South Carolina. Additionally, the campaign claims that it has also fulfilled signature requirements in 13 additional states: New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Idaho, Nebraska, Iowa, Ohio, New Jersey, New York, Minnesota, Florida, Alaska, and Tennessee.

In total, these 21 states represent 292 electoral votes. Kennedy is eligible for 138 electoral votes in the eight states where he is officially on the ballot. 

This makes him more qualified than his opponents to participate in the upcoming CNN debate, as he is eligible for more electoral votes than President Biden and former president Trump, who are only presumptive nominees and do not technically appear on any ballot yet. 

The phrase “presumptive nominee” is not on the FEC’s list of debate regulations. As reported by The Kennedy Beacon, the FEC recently told CNN that if it keeps Kennedy off of the June 27 debate stage then it would violate campaign finance law.