Robert F. Kennedy Jr. won two appeals Friday as he seeks to have his name removed from state ballots, delaying the expected first mailing of absentee ballots of the 2024 elections.
In North Carolina, an appeals court said Kennedy should be removed from the ballot, a ruling that would require counties to reprint ballots which were expected to be mailed beginning Friday. It's unclear if that ruling, which reverses a lower court's denial Thursday, will be appealed. But it will at least temporarily delay the distribution of mail ballots.
In Michigan, an appeals court agreed to remove Kennedy from the ballot as well, disagreeing with Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat, that it was too late to remove him. Benson plans to appeal immediately, said Angela Benander, a spokesman for the secretary, as military and overseas ballots must go out soon.
As a third-party presidential candidate, Kennedy had fought to secure ballot access. But after he dropped out of the race and endorsed former President Donald Trump, he sought to remove himself as an option for voters, as polling indicates his presence on the ballot could hurt the Republican nominee.
The North Carolina State Board of Elections ordered election officials in an email late Friday morning not to mail ballots out.
"Obviously, this will be a major undertaking for everyone. Our attorneys are reviewing the order and determining how to move forward. No decision has been made on whether this ruling will be appealed," said Paul Cox, general counsel for the state election authority.
Reprinting ballots in North Carolina would be a pricey undertaking that could significantly delay the distribution of mail ballots, thousands of which were supposed to go to overseas and military voters as early as Friday.
In Michigan, the ballots haven't been printed yet, but are scheduled to be printed soon. Military and overseas ballots must be sent out on Sept. 21, while absentee ballots are scheduled to go out on Sept. 26.
