JFK’s Only Grandson, Jack Schlossberg, Loses Democratic Primary in Setback for Kennedy Family Legacy

Jack Schlossberg, the only grandson of the late  President John F. Kennedy, lost the Democratic primary in New York’s 12th Congressional District on Tuesday, June 23, ending his bid for a congressional seat and narrowing his opportunity to continue on the Kennedy family’s storied political legacy.

Jack, 33, faced state Assemblymen Micah Lasher and Alex Bores, lawyer George Conway — ex-husband of former Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway — and public health researcher Nina Schwalbe.

According to the Associated Press, Lasher received the most votes (39.1 percent) and will advance to November’s general election. Bores received 35 percent of votes, and Jack came in third with 10.8 percent, with Schwalbe garnering 7.1 percent and Conway with 6.1 percent.

Jack launched his campaign last November and secured endorsements from former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, as well as his mother, Caroline Kennedy, the former U.S. ambassador.

Caroline, 68, — the daughter of JFK — previously appeared in a campaign ad for her son, saying, “I’ve been around politics for almost 70 years, so I can tell who’s in it for the right reasons. That’s why I’m so proud of my son, Jack, and I know that both my parents and his uncle Teddy [Kennedy] would be too.”

Despite coming from one of the most recognizable families in American politics, Jack positioned himself as an underdog throughout the race. His campaign slogan was “Believe in Something Again.”

His campaign was also marked by personal hardship. In December, his older sister, Tatiana Schlossberg, revealed in a personal essay in The New Yorker that she was quietly battling terminal cancer. She died that month at the age of 35.

Months ago, Jack previously told CBS Sunday Morning that the last thing his sister said to him was, “You better win.”

“No one knew me better, and I knew no one better than her,” he told the outlet.

Jack also faced scrutiny during the campaign after a critical report in The New York Times cited sources who alleged he sometimes slept on the job or went paddleboarding at a moment’s notice in New York City’s Hudson River. Meanwhile, Jack often made noise for railing against his cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is currently serving as the Secretary of Human and Health Services in President Donald Trump‘s administration.

Lasher will now head up against Republican Caroline Shinkle. The New York 12th Congressional District covers a majority of Manhattan.