(Reuters) -Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is considering ending his campaign to join forces with Republican rival Donald Trump, Kennedy's running mate said in an interview posted online on Tuesday.
The vice presidential candidate, Nicole Shanahan, said that as independents she and Kennedy ran the risk of drawing support from would-be Trump voters and clearing the way for Democrats Kamala Harris and Tim Walz to win the November election.
"Or we walk away right now and join forces with Donald Trump," she told Los Angeles media company Impact Theory. Asked when they would make a decision, she did not say.
Trump told CNN on Tuesday he would "certainly be open" to Kennedy playing a role in his administration if the independent candidate drops out of the race and endorses him.
"I like him, and I respect him," Trump told the network in an interview after a campaign stop in Michigan.
"He’s a brilliant guy. He’s a very smart guy. I’ve known him for a very long time," Trump was quoted as saying by CNN. "I didn’t know he was thinking about getting out, but if he is thinking about getting out, certainly I’d be open to it."
In a statement on X on Tuesday, Kennedy wrote: "As always, I am willing to talk with leaders of any political party to further the goals I have served for 40 years in my career and in this campaign."
Kennedy, the son of the late Democratic politician Robert F. Kennedy, is an environmental advocate who has spread misinformation on vaccines and whose family has denounced his campaign.
He initially sought to challenge U.S. President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination but switched to run as an independent. Biden later dropped out and endorsed Harris, who will accept the nomination at the party's convention this week.
Kennedy, 70, faces an uphill battle qualifying for the presidential ballot in many states, but he could siphon enough votes away in the tight race between Harris and Trump to have an outsized impact.
Kennedy's support stood at 4% in an Ipsos poll taken this month.
Trump has sought Kennedy's support, a phone call leaked in July showed. Shanahan in the interview released on Tuesday said Trump had taken an interest in their healthcare policies, making it worth exploring "a unity party."
Kennedy's team has never been in talks with Harris, she added.
(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly and Susan Heavey; Additional reporting by Kanishka Singh; Editing by Howard Goller and Deepa Babington)
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