Robert F. Kennedy Jr. failed to qualify for the CNN debate, leaving a Biden-Trump showdown

WASHINGTON – Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. failed to qualify for the June 27 CNN debate, leaving President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump to face off with one another.

The deadline to qualify for the debate was 12 a.m. EDT Thursday. To qualify, candidates must “appear on a sufficient number of state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote thresholds to win the presidency” and receive at least 15% in four qualifying national polls prior to the eligibility deadline, according to a CNN news release.

Kennedy had received at least 15% in three qualifying polls and was on the ballot in six states, making him eligible for only 89 electoral college votes, according to CNN.

Kennedy filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission in May claiming that CNN was making “prohibited corporate contributions” to the Biden and Trump campaigns violating federal campaign finance law and negotiated with the two campaigns to exclude other candidates, including him, from the debate stage.

He asked that the FEC take actions no later than Thursday and keep CNN, Biden and Trump from holding the debate “until the parties have come into compliance with the Federal Election Campaign Act,” according to the complaint.

The FEC declined to comment on the complaint.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: RFK Jr. failed to qualify for the CNN debate