Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. apologized to his family for a campaign ad that featured his late uncle, President John F. Kennedy.
The 30-second ad, a product of the American Values super PAC, displayed pictures and slogans from Kennedy‘s presidential campaign.
“I’m so sorry if the Super Bowl advertisement caused anyone in my family pain. The ad was created and aired by the American Values Super PAC without any involvement or approval from my campaign. FEC rules prohibit Super PACs from consulting with me or my staff. I love you all. God bless you,” Mr. Kennedy posted Sunday on X.
Mr. Kennedy’s cousin, Bobby Shriver, posted that he was not happy with the ad.
“My cousin’s Super Bowl ad used our uncle’s faces — and my Mother’s. She would be appalled by his deadly health care views. Respect for science, vaccines, & health care equity were in her DNA. She strongly supported my health care work at @ONECampaign & @RED which he opposes,” Mr. Shriver wrote.
Mr. Kennedy apologized to his cousin in his post, reiterating that his campaign had no involvement. However, the ad was pinned on his X page as of Monday morning.
RealClearPolitics national averages of polls shows Mr. Kennedy as polling more than 20 percentage points behind President Biden and 30 percentage points behind former President Donald Trump.
Mr. Kennedy originally joined the presidential race as a Democrat, but switched to the independent ticket in the fall.