In February, the Democratic National Committee announced that, after decades of leading the primary parade, Iowa and New Hampshire would be pushed back in the order, with South Carolina going first on Feb. 3. Under the plan, New Hampshire and Nevada are to host theirs on Feb. 6, followed by Georgia on Feb. 13 and Michigan on Feb. 27.  

While Biden and the DNC are enthused about the new pecking order, Iowa and New Hampshire may defy the directive -- and Team Biden has signaled that the president won't put his name on the ballots in those two states if they hold their contests before South Carolina. 

New Hampshire law requires the secretary of state to set the primary date at least seven days before any other state. Meanwhile, the Republican Party is using the traditional Iowa-New Hampshire sequence to start their primaries, and Iowa Democrats last month proposed holding their primary on the same date as the GOP.  

Even if it happens by a Biden forfeit, Kennedy victories in the first two states to vote could foster voter belief that his renegade campaign has viability heading into subsequent primaries.

Bent on rigging the outcome of the nomination process, the DNC has announced it has no plans for Democratic debates. However, just two months after announcing his candidacy, Kennedy is already garnering the support of 16% of Democrats in the RealClearPolitics average. An April NBC News poll found 51% of Democrats didn't want Biden to run for re-election. 

The Biden campaign may welcome an excuse to skip Iowa and New Hampshire. In 2020, Biden finished fourth in Iowa and fifth in New Hampshire before an endorsement from black South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn helped Biden revive his near-dead campaign by winning South Carolina.