2024 US election: who is Robert F Kennedy Jr? Presidential candidate’s vaccine and Covid-19 views explained

Kennedy is one of the most famous names in American politics and the 2024 election will see the famous family make a return. 

Robert F Kennedy Jr, 69, has officially filed his paperwork to run as the Democratic nominee for the presidency. By doing so, he challenges Joe Biden to be the name on the ballot paper next year. 

If he were to win, Kennedy would follow in the footsteps of his famous uncle, John F Kennedy, who served as president from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. While he has the pedigree to run for president, Kennedy’s chances remain that of an outsider. 

He is known for his stances against vaccines and his conspiracy theories about Covid-19. Kennedy gained a following online for his views but has since seen some profiles, such as his YouTube channel, shut down for spreading misinformation. 

Here’s everything you need to about the new Democratic candidate for the 2024 presidential election.

Who is Robert F Kennedy? 

Robert F Kennedy is an environmentalist lawyer and author. He was born in Washington DC in 1954 to Robert F Kennedy Sr and Ethel Kennedy. 

Kennedy is the nephew of former US president John F Kennedy. He has been married three times, most recently marrying wife Cheryl Hines in 2014.

He has six children from his two prior marriages to Emily Ruth Black and Mary Kathleen Richardson.

For more than thirty years, Kennedy worked as a professor in environmental law at Pace University. However, he has become a controversial figure over his views surrounding vaccines. 

What are Robert F Kennedy’s views on vaccines and Covid-19? 

Kennedy has been an outspoken critic of vaccinations well before the Covid-19 outbreak. He advocated for the now-widely discredited theory that there was a link between the administration of vaccines and autism.

He is chairman of the Children’s Health Defense group, an advocacy group which alleges that conditions such as autism, ADHD and autoimmune diseases among others are the result of factors such as vaccinations, exposure to chemicals and radiation and wireless communication. In the past, Kennedy has said that he is not against vaccines but advocates for more thorough testing of them. 

Kennedy was also a prominent name in the US-based Covid-19 conspiracy community. He promoted conspiracy theories about the virus, including that Bill Gates and his foundations - the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation - was trying to profit off of the pandemic by prolonging it with expensive vaccinations.