Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. tried to meet with Vice President Kamala Harris to discuss the possibility of him dropping out of the race and endorsing her in exchange for a position in her administration.
Kennedy, whose long-shot bid for president took a hit earlier this week when a judge ruled his name should not appear on New York’s ballot, sought out the meeting with Harris in hopes of landing a potential Cabinet secretary position in her future administration, according to a report from the Washington Post.
Harris and her campaign have yet to respond with an offer to meet the independent candidate, the report notes, nor have they shown any interest in entertaining his proposal.
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Independent Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
The longshot contender’s outreach was made through intermediaries, and comes after Kennedy made similar overtures to former President Trump during a meeting at last month’s convention in Milwaukee, which also resulted in no agreement between the two sides.
Kennedy, who polling has shown as one of the most disruptive independent candidates in decades, could be looking to leverage his position and drop out of the race, throwing his weight and considerable pull with his supporters behind the candidate who will allow him to continue having an influence past the election.
Nevertheless, Kennedy has continued to campaign and make regular media appearances with the expectation that he can win the election, the report notes, though he has left open the possibility of meeting with or getting out of the way of either Harris or Trump if they share an openness for his vision for the country.
“From the beginning of this campaign, we were saying people should be talking to each other,” Kennedy told the Washington Post. “That is the only way of unifying the country.”
Kennedy also expressed hope that Harris would reconsider his offer to meet, arguing that it is a “strategic mistake” for the Democrat’s campaign.
Vice President Kamala Harris. (REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein)
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“That’s my perspective,” Kennedy said. “I think they ought to be looking at every opportunity. I think it is going to be a very close race.”
The independent candidate would later take to social media, saying in a post on X Thursday that he has no intention of endorsing Harris.
“VP Harris’s Democratic Party would be unrecognizable to my father and uncle and I cannot reconcile it with my values,” Kennedy said in the post. “I have no plans to endorse Kamala Harris for President. I do have a plan to defeat her.”
Meanwhile, speculation continues that Kennedy and the Trump campaign could come to an agreement to bring the independent candidate into the fold. According to the Washington Post, the independent candidate was spotted at a hotel not far from Trump’s florida home and campaign headquarters.
Speaking to the Washington Post on the condition of anonymity, Trump campaign advisers said that they are in touch with Kennedy’s senior team and that there is an expectation he will drop out and throw his support behind the former president.
Former President Trump speaks to a crowd during a campaign rally on Sept. 25, 2023 in Summerville, South Carolina. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
Kennedy also noted he has had no contact with the Democratic Party since launching his independent campaign, which sparked a legal battle with the Democratic National Committee in an attempt to derail his and other third party campaigns.
“The only contact I have with the DNC is them suing me through intermediaries,” Kennedy told the Washington Post.
Reached for comment, the Kennedy campaign referred Fox News Digital to his Thursday post.
The Harris campaign did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.