With the exceptions of former President Joe Biden’s weak debate performance and the assassination attempt on Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, no event has swayed the 2024 presidential election more decisively than his endorsement by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. This event is particularly significant for Republican senators as they consider his nomination for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
As the world’s greatest deliberative body, the Senate should remember that SPQR, or Senatus Populusque Romanus, means The Senate and The People. The latter usually win in the end. The day before Kennedy’s endorsement of Trump, many independent and frustrated voters across the country were ready to sit out the election, feeling that both parties were too tied down to money and special interests. However, Kennedy’s endorsement of Trump may have swayed some of these voters to support the former president.
Selena Zito, a columnist, noted that many young, college-educated suburban moms who were concerned about what their children were eating joined Kennedy in supporting Trump. After Kennedy’s endorsement, Harris’s lead over Trump in the polls decreased, and eventually, Trump won the election.
Polls show that the day before Kennedy’s endorsement, Kamala Harris had a 3.7-point lead over Trump, the largest lead she would ever have in the race. Elections have consequences, and millions of new Republican voters demand that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at the helm of HHS be one of them.
It is crucial for Republican senators to remember the votes that Kennedy brought to Trump’s side and not take the Republican Party’s base for granted. If they replace Kennedy with a run-of-the-mill establishment lackey, they may lose the support of these voters, leading to electoral woes in 2026 and beyond. RFK Jr. is a symbol of a new way to think about health and the food supply, and his nomination will have significant implications for the 2024 election.
