### Supreme Court Rejects Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s Bid to Return to New York Ballot

The Supreme Court has ruled against independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s effort to have his name reinstated on New York's general election ballot. This decision upholds a lower court's ruling, which had removed Kennedy's name due to issues with the address listed on his nominating petition.

Kennedy, who ceased his independent campaign last month and subsequently endorsed former President Donald Trump, had sought emergency intervention from the Supreme Court. He argued that his supporters in New York had a constitutional right to vote for him, regardless of his campaign's suspension. His campaign emphasized that the challenges of adding him back to the ballot should not outweigh the constitutional rights of his 108,417 New York supporters who signed his petition.

The controversy began when Kennedy's campaign submitted over 120,000 signatures to New York's state elections board in May, which validated them and confirmed his spot on the ballot. However, legal challenges emerged, focusing on the validity of the Katonah, New York address stated in his petition. Despite Kennedy's claims that he was advised to use this address, courts determined it did not qualify as his "fixed" or "permanent" home.

Earlier rulings from both state and federal courts sided against Kennedy. New York's Court of Appeals declined to review the case, and federal courts including the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit rejected Kennedy's campaign arguments that the state's residence requirement was unconstitutional.

The Board of Elections certified New York's general election ballot on September 11, excluding Kennedy. The board and state officials argued that including Kennedy at this stage would disrupt election processes, cause voter confusion, and risk missing critical federal deadlines for mailing ballots to overseas and military voters. They also noted Kennedy’s actions to remove his name from ballots in other states, raising doubts about his concern for the signatories' rights.

Kennedy stated that revealing a public figure's home address imposes security risks for the candidate and their family, an assertion also dismissed by the courts. Despite his campaign's fight to get on ballots nationwide, Kennedy is now actively working to remove his name from various ballots to avoid undermining Trump’s chances against Vice President Kamala Harris.

In total, Kennedy’s name will not appear on ballots in 18 states, a significant increase from the initial 10 states he targeted for removal. This complex legal battle highlights the difficulties and volatility of running as an independent candidate in the U.S. presidential elections.