Copyright NBC 5 Chicago
Jack Schlossberg, the only grandson of late President John F. Kennedy and Jackie Kennedy Onassis, announced Tuesday night that he's running for U.S. Congress. The 32-year-old son of Caroline Kennedy and Edwin Schlossberg said he's running for the New York City seat long held by U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-NY, who in September announced he will retire. "I’m running for Congress to represent my home, New York’s 12th congressional district, where I was born and raised, where I took the bus to school every single day from one side of the district to the other," Schlossberg said in a video announcing his candidacy. "This is the best part of the greatest city on Earth," he said. Schlossberg's politics fall within the family tradition of allegiance to the Democratic Party. He has developed an eccentric social media personality in which he often rails against President Donald Trump, Republicans in general and his first cousin-once-removed, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Schlossberg has been vocally critical of Kennedy, a longtime anti-vaccine activist. “He’s trading in on Camelot, celebrity conspiracy theories and conflict for personal gain and fame," Schlossberg said of Kennedy in 2023 after the latter's refusal to endorse former President Joe Biden's reelection bid. Schlossberg completed undergraduate studies in history at Yale and received a law degree and master's of business administration from Harvard. In July 2024, he joined Vogue as a political correspondent for that year's presidential election. He indicated his campaign will be about fighting against Trump's policies. New York's 12th congressional district composes the geographical heart of Manhattan, including all of Central Park and most of the island north of Greenwhich Village and south of Harlem. "We have the best hospitals and schools, restaurants and museums," Schlossberg said in his statement Tuesday. "This is the financial and media capital of the world. This district should have a representative who can harness the creativity, energy and drive of this district and translate that into political power in Washington."
