It’s been more than 60 years since John F. Kennedy’s inauguration speech of 1961. Now his grandson, Jack Schlossberg, is running for office.
Schlossberg is JFK’s first direct descendant to throw their name into a political race. He announced his bid for New York’s 12th congressional seat, a district he points out that he was born and raised in.
He’s used social media to speak out against President Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and his own uncle Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Schlossberg has grasped the attention of a younger generation who may not have otherwise known about the Kennedy dynasty.
Experts like Scott Ferson, who served as a press secretary for Edward Kennedy, weighed in on how much the Kennedy name could mean in this race.
“He comes into the race with people of a certain age and older, much, much older voters who have a memory of Kennedys, and a younger generation whose memory of Kennedys, or identification with Kennedys is Robert F. Kennedy, and he’s a contrast to that in terms of carrying the mantle of the family name against a Robert Kennedy and the things that Robert Kennedy stands for,” Ferson said. “He’s gonna suck up a lot of the oxygen in this race.”
Schlossberg, who is 32, and the youngest of Caroline Kennedy and her husband Edwin Schlossberg’s children, took on a significant role within the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation.
Earlier this year, despite their obvious political differences, awarding Vice President Mike Pence the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for ensuring a peaceful transition of power on January 6, 2021.
Most recently, Schlossberg backed New York City’s Mayor Elect Zohran Mamdani, who some would argue, like Schlossberg, lacked the political experience but spoke to voters desperately wanting change.
Schlossberg entered what is already a crowded race for the seat currently held by Representative Jerry Nadler. He’s running on the idea he represents a new generation. It’s a move he said pays homage to his grandfather, who he said, broke molds back then. That is something he intends on doing today.
