RFK Jr. announces plans to abandon presidential campaign and endorse Trump over Harris.

• According to NBC News, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. intends to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race and support former President Donald Trump.
• Trump and Vice President Harris are the only candidates receiving more than one percent of the vote after his decision.
• Despite not receiving as much support as the Republican and Democratic nominees, Kennedy's independent campaign was highly popular, according to polls.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is considering dropping out of the presidential race and endorsing Donald Trump, according to NBC News, potentially disrupting the race between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Kennedy, 70, ran a campaign that was both driven and bogged down by his contrarian views and controversies on various hot-button issues.

Polls of the presidential race showed Kennedy making one of the strongest third-party showings in decades, although he never reached the level of support of the Republican and Democratic nominees.

Kennedy's appearance on 19 states' ballots could have had a decisive impact on the presidential map, where victory can hinge on swaying slim margins of on-the-fence voters in a handful of swing states.

Kennedy faced criticism from both sides, with accusations that he was running a campaign to take away votes from their preferred candidate.

Kennedy campaign officials consistently conveyed a stronger bond with Trump's campaign than Harris'.

In August, Nicole Shanahan, Kennedy's running mate, proposed that the campaign was considering whether to remain in the race or collaborate with Donald Trump.

Shanahan stated that continuing the third-party campaign posed a risk of a Kamala Harris and Tim Walz presidency because it could attract more votes from Trump.

In April, a leaked video revealed a Kennedy campaign staffer referring to President Joe Biden as the "mutual enemy" of Trump and Kennedy voters.

In July, the number of suspicions about the Kennedy campaign working against the Democratic ticket increased significantly after another leaked video emerged, featuring Trump telling Kennedy, "I would love you to do something. And I think it'll be so good for you and so big for you."

The Washington Post reported that Kennedy had discussed with Trump the possibility of endorsing his campaign and potentially joining his administration.

In the video, Trump concurred with Kennedy, who has long propagated false anti-vaccine beliefs, regarding childhood vaccinations.

Both Kennedy and Shanahan, the ex-wife of co-founder Sergey Brin, have been frequently criticized for promoting dangerous conspiracy theories, particularly regarding vaccines.

Over 100 million infant lives have been saved by immunization efforts in the past half century, according to a 2024 World Health Organization study.

Kennedy campaigned as an alternative to the mainstream political binary after withdrawing from the Democratic primary in late 2023.

As an environmental lawyer and activist, he heavily relied on his resume to present himself as a champion of corporate giants and a voice for disillusioned voters across the political spectrum.

RFK Jr.'s political standing may have been enhanced by his family's political legacy. As a member of the Kennedy political dynasty, he is the son of former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of former President John F. Kennedy, both of whom were tragically assassinated.

Kennedy's personal life was full of scandal, which kept him in the public eye.

Kennedy revealed in a recent interview with Roseanne Barr that he had previously staged a dead bear cub in Central Park, which he had acquired during a falconry expedition in New York City, to make it appear as though it had been hit by a cyclist.

The story that matched reports from a decade ago emerged weeks after Kennedy allegedly apologized to a woman who accused him of sexual assault in the late 1990s.

In the same month, Kennedy sparked controversy when he posted on Twitter, unsolicited, that as President he would not take a stance on the 9/11 attacks or any other contentious issues.