Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. shot down speculation Wednesday on whether he would join former President Donald Trump on a ticket for the 2024 election.
"Just to quell any speculation, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES will I join Donald Trump on an electoral ticket," Kennedy tweeted. "Our positions on certain fundamental issues, our approaches to governance, and our philosophies of leadership could not be further apart."
Kennedy, an anti-vaccine activist and environmental lawyer, launched his presidential campaign last month.
Kennedy’s comments come a day after a Rasmussen Reports survey found a majority of Democratic voters would back President Joe Biden for the party’s 2024 nomination, despite their "admiration" for Kennedy.
In a three-way contest for the Democratic nomination between Biden, Kennedy and author Marianne Williamson, 62% of Democrats said they would vote for Biden, 19% for Kennedy and 4% for Williamson. Six percent of Democrats would vote for another candidate and 10% are undecided.
In a matchup with Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, 44% of likely voters said they would choose a Trump-Kennedy ticket, and 44% said they would vote for Biden-Harris. Seven percent said they would vote for another candidate and 5% were not sure.
In such a matchup, a Trump-Kennedy ticket would gain the votes of 72% of Republicans, 20% of Democrats and 41% of unaffiliated voters, according to the survey.
Reaction to Kennedy’s tweet poured in from across the Twittersphere, with many asking him to reconsider and some questioning whether his statement was accurate.
"Too bad, it would be a homerun ticket and potentially unify the Country," Nick G. wrote.
"Well, I’ve learned through my tumultuous life never say never and never ever burn bridges," Maria Regina said.
"That’s exactly what I would expect someone to say, that was planning on joining Trump on his ‘24 ticket. So there’s that …" Philip Corrigan said.
Some, however, were relieved to hear that the Democrat would not be joining forces with the GOP front-runner.
"Who speculated that?" EV_Trapper tweeted. "America needs @RobertKennedyJr as the Democrat nominee."
"I didn't know there was any such speculation, and it would never have occurred to me that anybody would think such a daft thing," Nik Jewell said.
Last week, political strategist Dick Morris told Newsmax on May 2 that Kennedy’s campaign has "struck a chord" with the establishment's left and is making people nervous, and that Trump would do well to use that to his advantage.
"I believe that Robert Kennedy has struck a chord that could be enormously attractive to potential voters for Trump, particularly those who watch CNN," Morris said. "He talks about genetic engineering, genetically modified foods, pesticides, forced vaccinations, and all kinds of stuff like that. These are issues that Donald Trump believes in. Those are issues where he would agree with Robert Kennedy, and they're issues that cut completely across the political spectrum."