In a recent development, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has taken legal action to have his name removed from the presidential ballot in the battleground state of Wisconsin. Despite suspending his campaign back in August and pledging his support for Republican candidate Donald Trump, Kennedy's name remained on the ballot after the state elections commission voted to keep him on it.

Kennedy, who also filed a similar lawsuit in Michigan, faced a setback when a judge ruled on Tuesday that he must stay on the ballot. Another lawsuit filed in North Carolina is currently pending. The former presidential candidate is challenging the discriminatory treatment of third-party candidates under state law, arguing that Republicans and Democrats are given preferential treatment during the nomination process.

Under Wisconsin law, Republicans and Democrats have until the first Tuesday in September, 5 p.m., to certify their presidential nominee. However, independent candidates like Kennedy can only withdraw their candidacy before the August 6 deadline for submitting nomination papers. Once nomination papers are submitted, independent candidates are not provided with a means to have their names removed from the ballot, unless they pass away.

Citing this law, the Wisconsin Elections Commission voted 5-1 last week to approve Kennedy's name for the ballot, despite attempts by Republican commissioners to have him removed. The commission's decision allowed county election clerks to proceed with printing the ballots to meet upcoming state deadlines for mailing absentee ballots.

Kennedy's lawsuit seeks to bar the elections commission from including his name on the ballot and requests that the court halt the commission's vote on the matter. At the time of reporting, the Wisconsin Elections Commission had not responded to requests for comment regarding the lawsuit.

Wisconsin is set to have eight presidential candidates on the ballot, with the presence of independent and third-party candidates potentially playing a crucial role in the state's outcome. Notably, Wisconsin has witnessed close presidential elections in recent years, with four out of the last six races being decided by a margin of 5,700 votes to approximately 23,000 votes. In 2016, Green Party nominee Jill Stein received over 31,000 votes in Wisconsin - a figure that surpassed Trump's winning margin of just under 23,000 votes. This has prompted some Democrats to blame Stein for potentially influencing the outcome in favor of Trump.

As the legal battle unfolds, all eyes will be on the court's decision regarding Kennedy's request to have his name removed from the Wisconsin presidential ballot.