Gov. J.B. Pritzker, D-Ill., suggested Sunday that there were only two real choices for president in the upcoming election, and argued Democratic voters were throwing away their votes by supporting anyone other than President Biden.
CNN's Dana Bash pressed Pritzker, who was recently campaigning for the president in Michigan, on RFK Jr.'s standing in the presidential race, as he will be on the ballot in both Michigan and Hawaii.
"Does Kennedy being on the ballot there pose a real threat to Joe Biden's re-election?" Bash asked.
Pritzker touted "very high" enthusiasm among Democrats in the state. RFK Jr. gained ballot access in the battleground state of Michigan on Thursday.
"Robert F. Kennedy Jr. being on the ballot in Michigan, I think, is going to have little effect on the ultimate result. People understand that there are really only two candidates that have a path to victory in this country and in Michigan. And of course, that’s Joe Biden and Donald Trump," Pritzker said, noting that the two had "very different sets of values."
REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS PANIC TO QUICKLY DEFINE 'SPOILER' CANDIDATE RFK JR
Bash pushed back and said the governor was talking about the election as if it was a "binary choice."
"It's not a binary choice, and RFK Jr. does provide a third-way for people who just don't like what Joe Biden, or even Donald Trump for that matter, but in this particular case, it's Joe Biden I'm asking about, don't like what he's selling," Bash said.
Pritzker said he wasn't denying there were other names on the ballot, but argued Biden was the only real choice.
"I'm suggesting simply that when people go to the ballot box in November, they're going to see that there are really only two choices, because it's throwing away your vote if you're a Democrat and you vote for someone else on that ballot other than Joe Biden," he said.
"And I believe that people will see that contrast of values that I’m talking about and understand that they’ve got to vote for Joe Biden if they want to make sure that the United States does not fall into the hands of someone who is frankly a sociopath, has been indicted 91 times, and is someone who would take this country backward," he continued.
Michigan, a crucial battleground state, also saw a group of progressive voters protest the Democratic primary in the state, as many voted "uncommitted" instead of supporting the president. Biden is facing mounting backlash from the left over his handling of Israel.
CNN reporter Harry Enten warned in March that Kennedy was "polling north of 15% nationally."
Providing historical context, Enten compared the strength of Kennedy's support to famed independent candidate Ross Perot, who earned nearly 20% of the vote in the 1992 presidential election and nearly 10% in the 1996 election.
Polls have shown Kennedy and other third-party candidates hurting both Trump and Biden, but a poll published in March showed Trump ahead of Biden among registered voters in Michigan at 41%. Biden stood at 36%, Democrat-turned-independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at 10%, Green Party candidate Jill Stein at 4%, and progressive independent Cornel West came in at 3%.
Fox News Digital's Joseph Wulfsohn contributed to this report.
