'Loyal friend': Kevin Spacey endorses Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in presidential election

WASHINGTON ― Actor Kevin Spacey endorsed independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in the race for president Monday, calling him "a formidable fighter for justice and a loyal friend."

"There's a lot I can learn from this man. When the world turned its back on me, Bobby leaned in," Spacey wrote in a post on X.

Spacey has faced wide-reaching sexual misconduct allegations since accusations against him surfaced in 2017.

More:Election spoiler? How President Biden's allies hope to stop Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

His public backing of Kennedy comes as Spacey has preemptively criticized the upcoming release of a two-part documentary series called "Spacey Unmasked," which will detail sexual abuse claims against the actor.

Despite the allegations, Spacey has not been found in guilty in court.

Last year, Spacey, 64, was acquitted of nine sexual assault charges after a 4-week-long trial in London. He had been charged with sexual and indecent assault and causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent after accusations by four men in Britain.

In 2019, prosecutors in Massachusetts dropped indecent assault and battery charges filed against Spacey after a man claimed the actor had groped him at a Nantucket bar. Spacey said he was innocent. His accuser also dropped a civil lawsuit.

More:Kevin Spacey hits back at documentary set to feature allegations 'dating back 48 years'

Kennedy, son of liberal icon Robert Kennedy, is running a distant third place against President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee. But Kennedy is polling strongly enough − 8% in a USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll released Monday − to be a major factor in closely contested battleground states that will decide the election.

Democratic allies of Biden have labeled Kennedy an "election spoiler” trying to help Trump, singling out that Kennedy’s largest donor has also contributed to the former president. The Trump campaign has sought to paint Kennedy as a left-wing radical.

Other celebrities who support Kennedy include actor and comedian Rob Schneider and New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Reach Joey Garrison on X, formerly Twitter, @joeygarrison.