Jack Schlossberg, the late President Kennedy’s 32-year-old grandson, is reportedly considering throwing his hat in the ring to succeed retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.).
In a statement to The New York Times, the social media influencer said it was “certainly a possibility” that would run to succeed Nadler, who first took office just weeks before Schlossberg was born.
Nadler announced this week he would not seek an 18th term in Congress. He told the Times that while he once might have considered holding the seat until his death, the 78-year-old New York Democrat was now ready to heed his party’s call for generational change.
“Watching the Biden thing really said something about the necessity for generational change in the party, and I think I want to respect that,” Nadler told the Times in a Monday interview announcing his retirement.
He said a younger successor “can maybe do better, can maybe help us more.”
Schlossberg thanked Nadler for his career of public service shortly after the announcement.
“Thank you Rep Nadler for your years of service and leadership to our country and NYC — here’s to the legacy you leave and all the work ahead us !!” Schlossberg wrote in an Instagram post, whose comments were filled with encouraging messages for Schlossberg to launch his own bid.
Schlossberg did not respond to an immediate request for comment.
The Democratic primary for the coveted New York City House seat is expected to be crowded. The district spans the width of Manhattan, including the Upper East Side and Upper West Side down to Union Square.
Several other candidates are already weighing potential bids, though only 26-year-old Liam Elking is officially in the race so far.
The Times reported that Nadler was expected to support New York State assemblyman Micah Lasher, who said he would “take a very serious look” at running for the seat.
Nadler told the Times that he was “very fond of Micah” and thinks “highly of him,” adding that “any decision about endorsing a successor is way down the road.”
State assemblyman Alex Bores and city councilman Erik Bottcher are both reportedly considering entering the race, according to the Times.
Former FTC chair Lina Khan, a favorite of progressives, has landed on several Democratic operatives’ lists as a possible candidate for the seat, but she told the Times in July that she did not intend to seek public office.
Her spokesperson declined to tell the Times whether her thinking had changed, when reached for comment on Tuesday.
