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Support for anti-vaccine activist Robert Kennedy Jr.'s presidential campaign is on the decline, new polls show.
Kennedy, a long-shot Democratic candidate running against President Joe Biden, appears to be losing voters after an initial boost in support that some politicos feared would upend Biden's reelection effort.
A new Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday shows Kennedy with 13 percent support from Democrats or Democratic-leaning voters, a 3.5 percentage point decrease from June's survey.
The most recent poll, conducted from August 10 to August 14 among 1,632 likely voters, also showed a slight uptick in support for self-help author Marianne Williamson. She received 9 percent support in August, compared to 8 percent in June. Biden also saw a bump from 70 percent support to 72 percent in the last two months.
Those numbers are part of a national trend that shows Kennedy on a downward trajectory. He had a RealClearPolitics average of 20 percent in April, a stronger-than-expected showing that fell to 16.8 percent in June. As of Wednesday, his average from the polling data aggregator is 13.3 percent.
Newsweek reached out to Kennedy's campaign via email on Wednesday for comment.
Kennedy, who has been criticized by members of his own party for his anti-COVID vaccine position and his recent comments supporting a federal abortion ban, is viewed a divisive political figure.
While 34 percent of voters see him favorably, much of that number is driven by Republican support. Nearly half of Republicans said they approve of Kennedy, compared to only 22 percent of Democrats.
On the other hand, 35 percent say Kennedy is unfavorable, a sentiment largely agreed upon among Democrats, of whom 53 percent say they don't like the environmental lawyer. Another 29 percent of all voters said they haven't heard enough about him.
While the majority of Kennedy's support comes from voters who identify as somewhat liberal or moderate/conservative, Williamson's support is largely fueled by voters who identify as being very liberal. Biden enjoys support across all three political philosophies.
The Quinnipiac poll has a margin of error of +/- 2.3 percentage points.
Although Kennedy is running as a Democrat, several conservatives have floated the idea that former President Donald Trump should pick Kennedy as his running mate.
Speaking about Kennedy last month, Trump told Fox News, "I know a lot of the members of that family, and he's a very smart guy. And he's hit a little bit of a nerve, and a lot of Democrats I know want to vote for him."
About the writer
Katherine Fung is a Newsweek senior reporter based in New York City. She has covered U.S. politics and culture extensively. ... Read more