Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (the nephew of the late President John F. Kennedy) is running as an independent candidate in the 2024 presidential election. Though his independent campaign will be an uphill battle, it still has the potential to challenge both Democratic candidate, current President Joe Biden, and Republican candidate Donald Trump.

Kennedy’s rhetoric is still evolving, as he refines it to attract supporters from all sides of the political spectrum. Untethered to either party or their values, Kennedy’s campaign is buoyed by everyone from former Democrats and Republicans to New Age wellness influencers, as New York magazine summarizes. Wherever they come from, “Kennedy Americans” are “antiwar, anti-corporate greed, anti-the political Establishment captured by big-money donors, and anti-the perverse influence (real or imagined) of these corrupting forces on the environment and the human body”. Kennedy might appeal to Niles North’s politically diverse student body, seemingly responsive to liberals and conservatives alike. His wide base, though, naturally comes with some minor internal friction, which was exacerbated by pro-Israel remarks Kennedy made after Oct. 7.

As a political lone wolf, Kennedy’s chances of success are automatically shaky.

“There’s a part of me that would like to think about the idea that an independent could actually win a presidency…and yet, if I’m being…realistic, I don’t know if he can upset the party system,” History teacher Troy Bennett said.

Yet Kennedy has seen some success, with a 52% approval rating among participants in a Harvard CAPS-Harris survey. Bennett tells me that Kennedy “could be a spoiler–in other words, he’s not gonna win it for himself, but he’ll destroy it for one of the other candidates” by luring precious voters away from them. In fact, Nuzzi says (see first paragraph), as of her article’s publication, “were the election held today, his presence in the race would define what the next chapter of American history looks like”.

It’s worth noting, then, that Kennedy has a history of repeating misinformation and conspiracy theories. NPR reported in June that Kennedy has blamed antidepressants for school shootings, Wi-Fi for both cancer and “leaky brain,” and (most famously) vaccines for both autism and failure to protect children from disease. None of this has ever been credibly proven–a phrase Kennedy marks as censorship from elites who want to silence him.

Troy Bennett views Kennedy’s conspiratorial rhetoric cynically.

“It’s, to be honest with you, an old political ploy,” Bennett says. “You want press time, have a conspiracy theory.….Politicians have done this pretty consistently. If I want to be heard, I need to misinform [the public], or [spread] disinformation, or say something so bombastic that every news outlet picks it up.”

Certainly, The New York Times reports, Kennedy’s dubious evangelizing has been good for his wallet.

To be clear, none of this is to say that Kennedy has no political merits. He remarked with nuance to PBS on abortion, saying, “I think every abortion is a tragedy, but that it’s a choice that has to stay with the women”. He also has a background as an environmental lawyer, twice successfully suing Donald Trump for trying to build golf courses on the New York City watershed. And as I’ve noted, his message continues to evolve; a more sympathetic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. might ultimately appear on the ballot. Still, though, Kennedy can lead a significant number of voters away from the mainstream political parties with unproven, and possibly even dangerous, ideas about health and other topics. Going forward, it is wise to watch him carefully.