The US Supreme Court says that RFK Jr. can’t be taken off the ticket in Wisconsin and Michigan

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a previous independent presidential candidate who has now backed Republican Donald Trump, tried to get himself taken off the ticket in Wisconsin and Michigan for the Nov. 5 election, but the U.S. Supreme Court said no. Kennedy has said that he wants people who would have voted for him to vote for Trump instead.

Kennedy urgently asked the court to tell the Wisconsin Elections Commission and Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson to remove him from the ballots in those states, but the court said no. Michigan and Wisconsin are two of several states that are very close and could decide the election between Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris.

Neil Gorsuch, a conservative justice, didn’t agree with the ruling about the Michigan vote. No other judge spoke out against the decision.

Kennedy (RFK Jr.), an environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine campaigner, has asked the Supreme Court to help him stay on the ballot in some states while dropping off the ballot in others. In September, the Supreme Court turned down his request to be able to vote again in New York.

In August, Kennedy stopped running for office and backed the former president’s bid. Kennedy has told all of his fans to vote for Trump, and he has dropped out of the race in a number of states that lean Republican.

During his court battle, Kennedy has said that state officials are breaking the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution by making him stay on the ticket even though he wanted to be taken off.

In Wisconsin, Kennedy was not taken off the ballot because state law does not allow removal once a nominee has qualified for the vote, which Kennedy had already done. When a lower court ruled against Kennedy in September, the Wisconsin Supreme Court agreed.

In his argument, Kennedy said that Wisconsin officials should “cover his name with stickers” on the ballot. The committee told the Supreme Court, “This proposal is obviously bizarre.”

Kennedy asked Benson in Michigan to take him off the ticket, but he refused. Kennedy then sued Benson in state court. In September, the Michigan Supreme Court said no to him.

Kennedy then went to federal court and sued, but on September 27, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati ruled in favor of Benson. Kennedy “does not explain how to unring the bell at this juncture without great harm to voting rights and the public’s interest in fair and efficient election administration,” the 6th Circuit said in its decision. The ballots had already been printed.