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By Ewan Palmer
News Reporter
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It is unclear whether independent 2024 presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will join President Joe Biden and Donald Trump for the upcoming televised live debates.
On Wednesday, Biden and Trump agreed to two debates as the pair prepare for a rematch of their 2020 race in November. The first one will take place June 27 in Atlanta, hosted by CNN, with the second scheduled for September 10 on ABC.
While announcing the June debate, CNN said that in order to qualify a candidate's name must appear on a sufficient number of state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote threshold prior to June 20. They must also have received at least 15 percent in four separate national polls of registered or likely voters that meet CNN's "standards for reporting."
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In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Kennedy claimed he would meet the criteria to participate in the CNN debate. "I look forward to holding Presidents Biden and Trump accountable for their records in Atlanta on June 27 to give Americans the debate they deserve," he wrote.
Kennedy has also accused Trump and Biden of "colluding" to stop the Independent candidate from appearing with them on the debate stage.
"They are trying to exclude me from their debate because they are afraid I would win. Keeping viable candidates off the debate stage undermines democracy."
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However, it is unclear whether Kennedy will meet the polling threshold, or will reach the necessary number of electoral votes in states where he is confirmed to be on the ballots.
When contacted by Newsweek, a CNN spokesperson reiterated the criteria needed to qualify, which, so far, only Trump and Biden have met.
Kennedy's campaign team said that he has secured enough signatures to be on the ballot in six states already: Texas (40 electoral votes), Utah (six), Michigan (15), California (54), Delaware (three), and Oklahoma (seven).
Kennedy's team also say they have collected enough signatures to also appear on the ballots in New Hampshire (four electoral votes), Nevada (six), Hawaii (four), North Carolina (16), Idaho (four), Nebraska (five), Iowa (six) and Ohio (17).
The total number of electoral votes where Kennedy says he has qualified to appear at the 2024 Election only adds up to 182, not the 270 CNN says it requires to qualify for their debate.
Kennedy appears to have only hit at least 15 percent in two recognized national polls that meet CNN's "standards for reporting" as outlined in their criteria. These are a CNN survey in April where Kennedy received 16 percent, and a Quinnipiac University poll in April (16 percent).
A CNN spokesperson told Newsweek polls that meet CNN editorial standards and will be considered qualifying polls include those sponsored by: CNN, ABC News, CBS News, Fox News, Marquette University Law School, Monmouth University, NBC News, the New York Times/Siena College, NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist College, Quinnipiac University, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post.
Elsewhere, a Biden campaign spokesperson said that the president only agreed to the CNN debate on the basis that it was a one-to-one event with just himself and Trump.
In a Truth Social post, Trump claimed Biden does not want Kennedy to take part in the debate as they would be "debating over the same territory, like ridiculous Open Borders and the Green New Scam, both of which are killing our Country."
"He's also sharper and far more intelligent than Joe, all making for a bad combination of ingredients. I don't care if Junior joins the Debate, but right now his polling numbers are very low, he is not properly qualified in the States, and he seems to be on a downward path," Trump added. "Junior' needs more than his name to get on the 'stage!'"
If Kennedy were to make the debate stage, he would be the first third-party or independent candidate to do so since Ross Perot in 1992.
Perot won nearly 19 percent of the popular vote in the 1992 election and was considered a major factor in incumbent president George H. W. Bush losing the race to Bill Clinton.
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