University of Virginia professor Larry Sabato downplayed the importance of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.âs endorsement of former President Donald Trump Monday, saying it would not sway all of the former independent presidential candidateâs supporters.
Kennedy announced he was suspending his presidential campaign on Friday, then endorsed Trump and appeared with the former president at a rally in Arizona. Sabato said polls have shown Kennedyâs support declining for weeks since Vice President Kamala Harris became the presumptive Democratic nominee.
âHe has been dropping like a rock ever since Kamala Harris got in. When he started, he was in the upper teens. In some polls, he was in the low 20s and now, at best, heâs at five or six percent in some of the states and those polls are outdated,â Sabato said. âYou know, weâve had a Democratic convention. One network poll just a few days ago had him at two percent.â
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Kennedy received 5% support in a five-way race with Trump, Harris, Green Party candidate Dr. Jill Stein and independent candidate Cornel West, according to the RealClearPolling average of polls from July 31 to August 21, with Harris maintaining a 2% lead over Trump. Harris leads Trump by 1.5% in a head-to-head matchup in the RealClearPolling average of polls.
âFor people who think that because heâs endorsing Trump, he can just move that two percent into Trumpâs column, they donât know much about Politics. It doesnât work that way. Itâs not going to work that way,â Sabato said. âSome of them will go to Trump, some of them will vote for Harris. Some of them may choose someone else on the ballot. There are still plenty of other candidates depending on which state youâre in. (âŚ) I can think of, you know, several hundred things that would have more impact than RFK Jr. dropping out of the campaign and â and endorsing Trump, kind of. You know, heâs in, heâs out, heâs in here, heâs out there.â
âFrankly, itâs embarrassing,â Sabato said.
Kennedy told âFox News Sundayâ host Shannon Bream that he would be actively campaigning for Trump, and predicted Trump would be get support from other Democrats.
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