LAS VEGAS (KLAS) -- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has passed an important milestone in his run for president, securing the signatures he needs to appear on the Nevada ballot.
Enough signatures had been verified by Friday, the Nevada Secretary of State's office confirmed.
Legal challenges to Kennedy Jr.'s campaign could still be ahead. Democrats in Nevada and other states filed a lawsuit in June challenging whether he could appear on the ballot as an independent because of his affiliation with political parties in other states.
The latest 8 News Now poll showed Kennedy Jr.'s presence on the ballot would hurt Democrats. But that was when Joe Biden was still pressing his re-election bid. The political landscape changed significantly on Sunday when Biden ended his candidacy and threw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
The poll showed Kennedy pulling support from both Trump and Biden, but more from Biden.
The signatures cap a months-long battle for Kennedy Jr. in Nevada, where his campaign had to file a petition after signatures for his first petition were jeopardized because he collected them before he named his running mate. Nevada law requires the candidate to declare a vice presidential candidate -- even though the running mate's name doesn't appear on the petition.
Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar's office clarified guidance that would likely nullify his original petition because he did not list a running mate.
Kennedy Jr. picked California lawyer and philanthropist Nicole Shanahan as his running mate in late March.
Kennedy Jr.'s campaign sued Aguilar's office, saying that they received approval in January from Aguilar's office allowing them to collect the required number of signatures for a petition that did not list his vice presidential selection.
Aguilar's office had said in a statement that they sent correct guidance to all independent candidates that had filed petitions for ballot access “well in advance of the deadline to submit signatures."
Kennedy has gained traction with a famous name and a loyal base, and he has the potential to do better than any independent presidential candidate in decades, according to The Associated Press. Strategists from both major parties fear he could tip the election against them, though a big blow to his campaign came when he did not qualify for the CNN debate in June. Instead, he held a separate event where he responded in real time to the questions that were posed to President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.
State and county election officials verified over 22,000 signatures on the new petition, well over the requirement of just over 10,000.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.