Third-party presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suspended his 2024 presidential election campaign Friday, ending the campaign he launched in April 2023 as a Democratic candidate before later choosing the independent route.

What Happened: Kennedy announced that he has suspended his run as a third-party candidate in the 2024 election. He recalled a promise to voters that he would drop out if he was a spoiler in the race.

In his speech, he said he does not believe he has a real chance of winning in the 2024 election. Kennedy added that election polls indicate his continued presence in the race would result in a Democratic Party victory.

Kennedy said he has removed and will continue to remove his name from swing states or states where he believes he would hurt the Republican Party's chance of winning. In red states, Kennedy will remain on the ballot and voters can vote for him, he said.

“I throw my support behind Donald Trump," Kennedy said.

Kennedy expressed his belief that he would have won if the 2024 election had been conducted fairly. He also referenced a past primary election, which he deemed unfair, where President Joe Biden emerged as the winner.

Kennedy recalled launching his presidential campaign in April 2023 as a Democrat, a party he has long been loyal to, following in the footsteps of his family.

He shared that he attended his first Democratic National Convention at the age of 6 in 1960. At that time, Kennedy noted, the Democratic Party was a strong champion of the Constitution.

"We were the party of labor, of the working class," Kennedy said. "It was the power of democracy."

Kennedy said that he left the Democratic Party in October because it had changed so dramatically, becoming, in his view, the party of war, censorship, big pharma, big tech, and big money.

Attempting to win as a third-party candidate was a monumental task, something not lost on Kennedy Jr. during his speech Friday. Kennedy said conventional wisdom said it would be impossible to get on the ballot due to different state rules or to get enough signatures.

"We proved them wrong."

Kennedy thanked his volunteers and campaign staff for accomplishing the logistical feat.

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Why It's Important: With many election polls showing Kennedy getting around 4% to 5% of the vote, it will be interesting to see what new polls show and where these voters end up, either shifting to Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris or selecting a different third-party candidate.

Trump is set to speak in Arizona on Friday promising a special guest, which many believe will be Kennedy.

With Kennedy dropping out and endorsing Trump, the 2024 election race heats up with less than three months to go.

Kennedy was seen as the first third-party candidate with the potential to secure 5% of the popular vote since the 1996 election. With Kennedy ending his campaign, it may discourage other candidates from challenging the two major parties in future elections.

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