Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made a notable stop in Las Vegas on Saturday, campaigning for former President Donald Trump as Trump aims to reclaim the White House. Kennedy, a former Democrat turned independent, exited the 2024 presidential race in August and has since endorsed Trump as the Republican nominee.
Kennedy emphasized that the Democratic Party of today is starkly different from the party his father and uncle were a part of in the 1960s. Speaking to an enthusiastic crowd at the Bob Price Recreational Center in Las Vegas, he aligned Trump’s “Make America Great Again” theme with the era when his uncle, John F. Kennedy, was President. “We were a moral authority across the world,” Kennedy remarked, echoing sentiments reported by the Las Vegas Sun.
Further into his speech, Kennedy mentioned a recent conversation with Sean O’Brien, the general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Kennedy noted that O’Brien asked him to send his love to Trump, although the Teamsters union has officially refrained from endorsing any candidate in the presidential race.
Joining Kennedy at the event was former U.S. Representative Tulsi Gabbard, a Hawaii Democrat turned independent who previously sought the Democratic presidential nomination. During the Trump campaign’s Reclaim America Tour, both Kennedy and Gabbard criticized former Vice President Dick Cheney. Cheney, a Republican, has publicly endorsed Trump’s Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. “The fact that she is celebrating the support of someone like Dick Cheney tells you everything you need to know about what kind of commander in chief she will be,” Gabbard told the crowd.
Last week, Kennedy took to Facebook to outline how a re-elected Trump administration would end perpetual wars, eliminate government corruption, safeguard civil liberties, and establish a unity government. One rally attendee, Robert Bourke of Las Vegas, shared that although he initially supported Kennedy, he had shifted his support to Trump. “Trump has embraced a lot of the qualities of Kennedy’s campaign,” Bourke told the Las Vegas Sun. “I felt like they had very similar platforms to begin with.”
In response to a question from Casino.org about the significance of Kennedy and Gabbard’s appearance in Las Vegas, Brandon Rottinghaus, a political science professor at the University of Houston, explained that Trump hopes to attract Democratic voters, particularly young, conservative-leaning men. “This is a coalition Trump needs to keep on his side and turn out to vote, both challenges down the stretch,” Rottinghaus added.
Trump himself visited Las Vegas earlier this month, and despite failing to carry Nevada in the 2016 and 2020 elections, he remains actively campaigning in the state. A recent poll released by Las Vegas TV station KLAS and Emerson College shows a tight race, with Harris and Trump each securing 48% of the Nevada vote. Only 2% of voters remain undecided or support a different candidate.
Both Harris and Trump have campaigned in Nevada, with a shared position of eliminating taxes on tips – a policy that resonates well with the hospitality workers in the state’s casinos and hotels.
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