July 12 , 2023 - Political pundits may say that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has no possibility of being elected president.  This is based on the fact that an average of recent polls for the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination  shows Kennedy with 14% while  President Joe Biden is far out in front with 64%.

But what if the number of campaign buttons a candidate sells counted as votes?  Who leads the race in campaign button sales is it Joe Biden , Donald Trump or maybe Ron DeSantis? The answer is that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sells far more campaign buttons than any Democrat or Republican by a wide margin. 

We looked at all our sales on eBay for two months from May 6 , 2023 through July 5 , 2023. During that time customers purchased 68  RFK Jr. campaign buttons while Biden  sold just 1 and Trump 5. The table below shows the sales strength of RFK Jr.

Campaign Buttons Sales 5/6/2023 - 7/5/2023

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. - 68

Tim Scott - 10

Ron DeSantis - 8

Larry Elder - 7

Cornel West - 7 

Marianne Williamson - 6

Donald Trump - 5 

Vivek Ramaswamy - 5

Doug Burgum - 4

Asa Hutchinson - 4

Nikki Haley - 4

Francis Suarez - 4

Chris Christie - 3

Joe Biden - 1

Mike Pence - 1

RFK Jr. probably dominates campaign button sales because of  the tremendous nostalgia that the Kennedy name generates. Having an uncle , President John F. Kennedy , and a father , U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy , who are both Democratic party icons ,  goes a long way in attracting attention from voters and the media. In addition to the Kennedy name , he  has instant ID recognition from his initials alone.

There was a time in American politics when a candidate could be known by just three letters. Franklin D. Roosevelt was FDR , John F. Kennedy was JFK , Lyndon B. Johnson was LBJ , and even Hubert H. Humphrey was HHH. During his political career , Robert F. Kennedy's farther  was often referred to as RFK.  Kennedy Jr. as he embarks on his bid for The White House has the use of both a famous name and a famous set of initials.

While Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dominates campaign button sales , what is the reason for such low numbers for Biden and Trump?  While both are expected to win their respective parties' nomination the demand for Biden or Trump campaign buttons is low. One explanation is that they  have been around for a long time. Biden was elected a U.S. Senator in 1972 and has run for president four times , in 1988 , 2008 , 2020 and 2024. Trump has been a well known public figure since the early 1980's and the 2024 election marks his third presidential race in a row after 2016 and 2020. Any newness they may have once had has long since passed. Polling has shown that voters are not thrilled with the prospect of a Biden vs. Trump rematch , which has apparently translated into campaign button sales fatigue for them both.

While Robert F. Kennedy Jr. campaign buttons are far and away outselling the other candidates , the coming months will determine if RFK Jr. can turn those sales figures into actual votes.