RFK secures ballot presence in Michigan, posing potential threat to Biden's prospects in state

Presidential elections in the United States are routinely decided by a handful of counties in a handful of states, and 2024 will likely be no different, and that is why a recent development in the Midwest has the Biden campaign on edge.

As The Hill reports, Robert F. Kennedy has managed to secure a spot on the November ballot in the critical swing state of Michigan, something which could end up pulling votes away from the incumbent Democrat, President Joe Biden.

Though a declared independent, Kennedy was supported in Michigan by the Natural Law Party, which gathered signatures and assisted with the paperwork necessary to facilitate his appearance on the ballot in the Great Lakes State.

In announcing the party's success in aiding Kennedy's push in Michigan, Natural Law Party chair Doug Dern declared, “He's the most qualified candidate in the modern-day history of America.”

Kennedy has obtained ballot access in eight states thus far, with the success in Michigan seen as an especially big win for the upstart candidate.

Michigan is considered an important state by the campaigns of both Biden and former President Donald Trump, and while Biden prevailed there in 2020, support for Trump is on the rise.

Likely of particular concern to the Biden camp is the potential for Kennedy to draw votes from individuals who have soured on the current president over his stance on the conflict between Israel and Hamas, as Fox News notes.

Dearborn, Michigan, is home to one of the largest Middle Eastern populations in the entire nation, and it has been the scene of a growing movement to thwart Biden's campaign hopes due to what many there feel is his administration's insufficient commitment to preventing a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

According to Lexis Zeidan, a lead organizer for a group called Listen to Michigan, the push to unseat Biden -- perhaps in favor of someone like Kennedy -- is gaining traction.

“We've mobilized our infrastructure that we've been able to build as a grassroots movement in Michigan to support other key states,” Zeidan said, illustrating the fervor within the organization.

Though the “Abandon Biden” movement was thought by some to have reached its apex ahead of the Michigan primary, organizers say that they are now working on a “swing state strategy for the general election to ensure Biden's loss.”

Ronald Stockton, professor emeritus a the University of Michigan-Dearborn believes that the current situation could pose a real danger to Biden's hopes of winning another four years in the White House.

“Those people below 30 are abandoning Biden, they're so heavily against this war. It's a generational think,” Stockton observed.

Though RFK is a self-proclaimed defender of Israel, his presence on the ballot as something of a low-risk protest vote option for voters disenchanted with Biden could be just enough to put the state out of reach for the current president and hand it back to Trump, who won Michigan in 2016.