JFK grandson Schlossberg to run for Jerry Nadler's House seat

Jack Schlossberg, 34, son of Caroline Kennedy and grandson of our nation’s 35th president, John F Kennedy, has announced in an email to supporters on Tuesday that he intends to run for New York’s congressional seat currently held by Jerry Nadler, according to the New York Times. 

Nadler, 78, announced in September that he would not be seeking re-election after his 34-year Congressional career. Nadler said, “Watching the Biden thing really said something about the necessity for generational change in the party.” 

Nadler currently represents the 12th district of Manhattan, running from Union Square to the top of Central Park, one of the city’s oldest and wealthiest districts. 

Schlossberg felt that the Democratic Party was in need of more voices to push back on President Trump, stating that having a Democratic majority in the House would be the only way that democratic norms could be restored. 

“There is nothing our party can’t do to address costs of living, corruption and the constitutional crisis that we’re in,” he said, and “but without the control of Congress, there’s almost nothing that we can do.”

Schlossberg graduated from Yale and holds master's and law degrees from Harvard; however, he does not have much professional experience. He worked at the State Dept. for a short time and has been involved in political journalism with Vogue during the 2024 election cycle. 

Schlossberg has a social media following that may be his best asset. He frequently posts about national issues online, and has more than 830,000 TikTok followers and about 172,000 followers on X. 

He is a young millennial, like Zohran Mamdani, 34, recently elected New York City mayor, but unlike Mamdani, who has lived in Uganda and South Africa, Schlossberg grew up in the district, has name recognition in American politics, and has spoken, along with his mother Caroline, at the DNC in 2024.

“I also bring two years now of experience in a toxic and polluted media environment where, unlike a lot of people, I know how to breathe that air,” he said, adding, “I think that this district needs somebody who knows how to fight back effectively in this new political era that we’re living in.”

Micah Lasher, Alex Bores, and Jami Floyd have announced that they will be campaigning for the seat. Others considering a run are reported to include Chelsea Clinton, Erik Bottcher, and Liam Elkind. The seat will be contested in June 2026.