RFK Jr claims that Biden, Trump are 'colluding' to keep him from presidential debates

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. accused President Joe Biden and Donald Trump of “collusion” on Wednesday after the two candidates agreed on two debates—without him.

The Democratic incumbent and former president confirmed their acceptance of invitations for the debates. CNN announced it will host a debate in Atlanta on June 27, followed by a second debate hosted by ABC on September 10.

“Presidents Trump and Biden are colluding to lock America into a head-to-head matchup that 70% say they do not want,’ Kennedy said on his X, formerly Twitter account. “They are trying to exclude me from their debate because they are afraid, I would win. Keeping viable candidates off the debate stage undermines democracy.”

Kennedy falls short of qualifying for the first debate, according to CNN. Although the campaign meets the network's 15% polling threshold in two out of four qualifying polls, the cable broadcaster also requires candidates to “appear on a sufficient number of state ballots to reach the 270 electoral vote thresholds to win the presidency prior to the eligibility deadline.”

According to RFK Jr’s campaign, the Kennedy-Shanahan ticket has achieved ballot access in six states, including Utah, Michigan, California, Delaware, Oklahoma and Texas.

Moreover, the campaign says that it has garnered enough signatures for ballot access in eight additional states, including New Hampshire, Nevada, Hawaii, North Carolina, Idaho, Nebraska, Iowa, and Ohio.

CNN’s rules state that a candidate must be on the ballot in enough states to secure a majority of Electoral College votes by June 20. With a hard deadline looming, RFK Jr. remained confident that his campaign would meet the requirements.

“I’m happy to report that I will meet the criteria to participate in the @CNN debate before the June 20 deadline,” Kennedy posted on social media. “I look forward to holding Presidents Biden and Trump accountable for their records in Atlanta on June 27 to give Americans the debate they deserve.”

Jeremy Yurow is a politics reporting fellow based in Hawaii for the USA TODAY Network. You can reach him at JYurow@gannett.com or on X, formerly Twitter @JeremyYurow

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: RFK Jr slams Biden, Trump for 'colluding' to keep him from debates