Current:Home > 新闻中心RFK Jr. closer to getting on New Jersey ballot after judge rules he didn’t violate ‘sore loser’ law -InvestTomorrow
RFK Jr. closer to getting on New Jersey ballot after judge rules he didn’t violate ‘sore loser’ law
View
Date:2025-04-24 21:09:24
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. didn’t violate New Jersey’s “sore loser” law, a judge ruled on Tuesday, potentially clearing the way for Kennedy to appear on the presidential ballot as an independent.
Administrative Law Judge Ernest Bongiovanni rejected the petition by Scott Salmon, an election law attorney in the state, who challenged Kennedy’s independent bid for the White House.
“Respondent did not attempt to seek the democratic primary nomination in New Jersey and thus cannot be considered a loser under (the law),” the judge wrote.
New Jersey, like a number of other states, has a sore loser law that bars candidates who ran in a primary from running as independents in a general election. Bongiovanni’s ruling follows another judge’s similar opinion.
The matter now goes to the secretary of state, New Jersey’s top elections official, who can accept or reject the judge’s order under state law. A message seeking comment was left with Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way, who serves simultaneously as the secretary of state, on Wednesday.
Salmon brought a suit in 2020 saying that then-potential presidential candidate Kanye West gathered an inadequate number of signatures. At the time, Salmon said he was a registered Democrat. West eventually withdrew his petition to be on the ballot.
Kennedy’s famous name and a loyal base have buoyed his bid for the White House. Strategists from both major parties had voiced concerns that he might negatively affect their candidate’s chances.
A similar challenge in New York questioning his claim that he lives in New York is unfolding in court there. He testified this week that his address is in the New York City suburb of Katonah.
Salmon sought to keep Kennedy from the ballot as an independent under a state law that bars candidates who run for a major party nomination in a primary from seeking the same office in the general election as an independent. Salmon sought to use the statute, known as a sore loser law, because Kennedy had filed with the Federal Election Commission in April 2023 to run as a Democrat; he amended the filing in October to begin an independent bid.
Kennedy argued that Salmon didn’t have standing to sue because he isn’t a candidate for president himself, among other arguments. A message seeking comment was left with the Kennedy campaign.
veryGood! (98)
Related
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- Austin ordered strikes from hospital where he continues to get prostate cancer care, Pentagon says
- A 4th person has died after fiery crash near western New York concert, but motive remains a mystery
- Former Connecticut mayoral candidate pleads guilty to Jan. 6 Capitol breach charge
- Why members of two of EPA's influential science advisory committees were let go
- The Supreme Court will decide whether local anti-homeless laws are ‘cruel and unusual’
- Federal jury finds Puerto Rico ex-legislator Charbonier guilty on corruption charges
- Blinken meets Chinese and Japanese diplomats, seeks stability as Taiwan voters head to the polls
- Retirement planning: 3 crucial moves everyone should make before 2025
- Elmore Nickleberry, a Memphis sanitation worker who marched with Martin Luther King, has died at 92
Ranking
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- 'True Detective' Season 4: Cast, release date, how to watch new 'Night Country' episodes
- Former LA County sheriff’s deputy pleads no contest to lesser charges in fatal on-duty shooting
- A 4th person has died after fiery crash near western New York concert, but motive remains a mystery
- Krispy Kreme offers a free dozen Grinch green doughnuts: When to get the deal
- Alaska ombudsman says Adult Protective Services’ negligent handling of vulnerable adult led to death
- They’re not aliens. That’s the verdict from Peru officials who seized 2 doll-like figures
- Lights, cameras, Clark: Iowa’s superstar guard gets prime-time spotlight Saturday on Fox
Recommendation
US wholesale inflation accelerated in November in sign that some price pressures remain elevated
Q&A: In New Hampshire, Nikki Haley Touts Her Role as UN Ambassador in Pulling the US Out of the Paris Climate Accord
Former Pennsylvania defense attorney sentenced to jail for pressuring clients into sex
15 Slammin' Secrets of Save the Last Dance
Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
FAA ramps up oversight of Boeing's manufacturing procedures
Columnist’s lawyer warns judge that Trump hopes to ‘sow chaos’ as jury considers defamation damages
They’re not aliens. That’s the verdict from Peru officials who seized 2 doll-like figures