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ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — A judge ruled Monday that independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s name should not appear on New York’s ballot, saying that he falsely claimed a New York residence on nominating petitions despite living in California.
The scion of the famed Democratic political dynasty vowed to appeal, dismissing the ruling as partisan. If the judge's decision is upheld, it would not only keep Kennedy off the ballot in New York but could also lead to challenges in other states where he used an address in New York City’s suburbs to gather signatures.
“The Democrats are showing contempt for democracy,” Kennedy said in a statement, noting the ruling judge is a Democrat. “They aren’t confident they can win at the ballot box, so they are trying to stop voters from having a choice. We will appeal and we will win.”
The ruling came after a North Carolina judge decided earlier Monday that Kennedy can remain on that state’s ballot following a separate challenge on different grounds.
In New York, Judge Christina Ryba concluded in her 34-page decision that the rented bedroom Kennedy claimed as his residence in New York wasn't a “bona fide and legitimate residence, but merely a ‘sham’ address that he assumed for the purpose of maintaining his voter registration" and furthering his political candidacy.
“Given the size and appearance of the spare bedroom as shown in the photographs admitted into evidence, the Court finds Kennedy’s testimony that he may return to that bedroom to reside with his wife, family members, multiple pets, and all of his personal belongings to be highly improbable, if not preposterous," the judge wrote.
Ryba said evidence submitted in trial showed Kennedy had a “long-standing pattern” of borrowing addresses from friends and relatives so he could maintain his voter registration in New York state while actually residing in California, where he has a home with his wife, “Curb Your Enthusiasm” actor Cheryl Hines.
“Using a friend’s address for political and voting purposes, while barely stepping foot on the premises, does not equate to residency under the Election Law," the judge wrote. "To hold otherwise would establish a dangerous precedent and open the door to the fraud and political mischief that the Election Law residency rules were designed to prevent.”
Clear Choice Action, the Democrat-aligned political action committee that backed the legal challenge on behalf of several voters in the state, said the ruling shows Kennedy intentionally misled election officials and betrayed voters’ trust.
“The Kennedy team will undoubtedly file desperate lawsuit after desperate lawsuit in the coming days and weeks; they will fail, and it will not change the simple truth: he lied, and he’s being held accountable,” the organization said.
Kennedy, who led a New York-based environmental group for decades and whose namesake father was a New York senator, argued during the trial that he has lifelong ties to New York and intends to move back.
Kennedy said he currently rents a room in a friend’s home in Katonah, about 40 miles (65 kilometers) north of midtown Manhattan, though has only slept in that room once due to his constant campaign travel.
The 70-year-old candidate testified that his move to California a decade ago was so he could be with his wife, and that he always planned to return to New York.
Barbara Moss, who rents the room to Kennedy, testified that he pays her $500 a month. But she acknowledged there is no written lease and that Kennedy’s first payment wasn’t made until after the New York Post published a story casting doubt on Kennedy’s claim that he lived at that address.
The judge also heard from a longtime friend of Kennedy’s who said the candidate had regularly been an overnight guest at his own Westchester home from 2014 through 2017, but was not a tenant there as Kennedy had claimed.
Attorneys representing several New York voters grilled Kennedy in often heated exchanges as they sought to make their case, pointing to government documents including a federal statement of candidacy with a California address, and even a social media video in which Kennedy talks about training ravens at his Los Angeles home.
Ryba said that his testimony that none of the furniture or decor in the room belonged to him — while Hines and his “wide assortment of domestic and exotic pets" remained across the country — was compelling evidence that he didn't intend to remain at the Katonah address.
Kennedy, in his statement after the ruling, reiterated that he provided evidence New York has been his primary residence since 1964, including that he pays state taxes, has a law practice in the state and holds a driver’s license, falconry license and other recreational licenses in New York.
Ryba had dismissed such arguments in her ruling as “immaterial” without proof of physical presence at a specific address where he intends to live permanently.
Kennedy has the potential to do better than any independent presidential candidate in decades thanks to his famous name and a loyal base. Both Democrat and Republican strategists have expressed concerns that he could affect their candidate’s chances.
Kennedy’s campaign has said he has enough signatures to qualify in a majority of states, but his ballot drive has faced challenges and lawsuits in several.
Kennedy has told reporters that getting knocked off the ballot in New York could lead to lawsuits in other states where his campaign listed the same address.
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Marcelo reported from East Meadow, N.Y. Associated Press writer Michael Sisak contributed to this report.