Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-MA) revealed on Monday that he is mulling over a bid to unseat Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) when the Massachusetts senator is up for reelection in 2020.
“Over the past few weeks I’ve begun to consider a run for the U.S. Senate,” Kennedy wrote in a Facebook post. “This isn’t a decision I’m approaching lightly and – to be completely candid – I wasn’t expecting to share my thoughts to soon.”
The 38-year-old congressman stated that he has not decisively made up his mind on whether or not to run for the higher office, but has been discussing the possibility with his family. Kennedy is a member of the famed Kennedy dynasty — he is the grandson of the late U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and the son of former Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy II (D-MA).
“I’m happy to put this on the table for you now. I haven’t reached a decision yet – that’s the truth,” Kennedy said. “I’m thinking about what I have to offer Massachusetts, what is the most important in this political moment, and what kind of party Democrats need to be building for the future.”
However, Kennedy has already filed the necessary paperwork to launch a Senate campaign, according to The Boston Globe. In addition to submitting a statement of candidacy, he has also created a campaign fundraising committee for a statewide race.
“I hear the folks who say I should wait my turn, but with due respect – I’m not sure this is a moment for waiting. Our system has been letting down a lot of people for a long time, and we can’t fix it if we don’t challenge it,” Kennedy said. “I’ve got some ideas on how to do that.”
“And I don’t think our democratic process promises anyone a turn,” he continued. “What it does promise is the chance for anyone to earn it – if we think we have something to offer and are willing to put ourselves and our ideas out there.”
Kennedy and Markey, however, are largely aligned ideologically and a primary race would seemingly be a referendum on age and personality over substance.
Markey, who first was elected to Congress in 1976, then won his Senate seat during a special election in 2013, stated that he will be running to retain his seat regardless of who his primary challenger ends up being.
“I am running for reelection,” Markey said. “And I am going to criss-cross this state and give it everything I got.”
He further noted that he is running on a platform that Massachusetts voters care most about, such as climate change, gun control, and opposing President Donald Trump.
“I’m fighting to protect people who are being punished by Donald Trump just because of the color of their skin,” Markey told reporters while in Boston. “I’m fighting to ensure that we have a Green New Deal that we put on the books. I’m fighting to have the strongest possible gun safety laws be instituted in our country to stop the carnage on the streets of our nation.”
“The Trump administration is trying to make America great again by making America hate again,” he added. “I have been fighting him since the day he was sworn in, and I am going to continued to fight for the people who are most vulnerable in our country every single day.”