RFK Jr.'s faltering presidential bid is nearly out of funds
The independent candidate once more outpaced his fundraising efforts by spending more than he took in last month.
![RFK Jr.'s faltering presidential bid is nearly out of funds](https://static.politico.com/de/3a/77e1a2dd4aa0bd4cec2d61554604/election-2024-kennedy-new-york-54260.jpg?#)
According to a report filed with the Federal Election Commission on Monday, the independent candidate concluded last month with just $3.9 million in available funds, while carrying nearly $3.5 million in debt. The campaign indicated it spent more than $7 million during July, despite reducing the number of events, but only managed to raise about $5.6 million — with nearly half of that total sourced from his running mate, Nicole Shanahan.
This financial report comes as Kennedy’s campaign encounters a series of obstacles; he continues to work on securing ballot access in critical states but was recently denied entry in New York, where a judge determined that the residential address listed on his petitions was not his valid home address.
Since early July, Kennedy has not attended any public campaign events, appearing only occasionally at conferences and podcasts. His poll numbers have also declined as both major parties have begun consolidating support following the Republican National Convention and Vice President Kamala Harris' ascension to the top of the Democratic ticket, succeeding President Joe Biden.
In recent weeks, Kennedy has reportedly expressed interest in securing roles within the potential administrations of both Harris and former President Donald Trump in exchange for withdrawing from the race and endorsing them, though he has reportedly been turned away.
His July finance report highlighted the campaign’s ongoing efforts related to ballot access, with Accelevate 2020 LLC being the month’s largest vendor, specializing in ballot access initiatives. Additional substantial expenses totaled over $600,000 spent on Facebook and Google ads. Furthermore, the campaign added more than $400,000 in new debt to a security firm run by a longtime associate of Kennedy.
Despite a previously announced joint fundraising partnership with the Libertarian Party, Kennedy's fundraising increased only slightly in July, failing to match his campaign’s spending levels.
Alejandro Jose Martinez contributed to this report for TROIB News