Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has announced that attorney and entrepreneur Nicole Shanahan will be his his running mate, stating at a campaign event, “I’m so proud to introduce to you, the next vice president of the United States, my fellow lawyer, a brilliant scientist, technologist, a fierce warrior mom, Nicole Shanahan.”
Shanahan said in her speech, “I am so hopeful for this, I hope you all understand now what has brought me into politics, in this moment I am leaving the Democratic party, and I want to say two things about that. First even though I am leaving the party I believe I am taking the best ideals and impulses with me. The Democratic party is supposed to be the party of compassion, it is supposed to be the party of diplomacy and science, it supposed to be the party of civil liberties and free speech, and most importantly the party of the middle class and the American dream.”
Kennedy is running as an Independent candidate, Shanahan made large contributions to Democratic candidates in 2016 and 2020. She and Kennedy are like-minded on vaccines, agricultural issues, and climate change, and she has donated more than $4.5 million toward his 2024 campaign. Shanahan married Google co-founder Sergey Brin in 2018, and the two separated in 2021 before finalizing their divorce in 2023.
