A Kennedy grandson faces defections, donor doubts and staffing shifts as he seeks a congressional nomination. Can his famous name translate into enough votes?

Jack Schlossberg, JFK’s grandson, is running for a seat in the U.S. Congress from Manhattan’s 12th district in the Democratic primary to be held on Tuesday.

The 33-year-old candidate had hoped to leverage his famous lineage and broad reach on social media to engage voters who are indifferent to politics.

However, the campaign is facing problems: departures of some campaign staff, shifts in positions, and doubts about his political qualifications among colleagues and donors.

Our party simply doesn’t know how to sell our message – and that’s not the whole story, but it’s a significant part of the problem. And everyone says it’s time for a new generation… The Democratic Party needs to learn to operate differently – until someone actually tries, and then they won’t want it.

– CNN

Key Campaign Challenges and Voter Expectations

The central concept of his campaign is that in an era of rapid transformation of family history into a massive online audience, a candidate with a well-known lineage can connect with voters who consider politics to be useless.

At the same time, signs of risk are emerging: several polls and the caution of friends who help may confirm that he faces not only rejection but also a risk of letting down the Kennedy name and the people who still believe in the legacy.

Although he may have a chance to advance from among eight candidates in the 12th district, victory requires a majority. The campaign focuses on online activity topics and responses to aggressive comments, as well as on using posters with the warning SELLOUTS BEWARE around opponents’ posters.

Never use my family name to demean me as a person or who I am.

– Jack Schlossberg

CNN spoke with Schlossberg and several of his friends and donors, as well as opponents who claim that he did not fully understand that ranked voting in New York does not apply to the congressional district, and that he sometimes faltered – both on X and in person – in response to criticism and rivals’ actions.

Nadler, 79, endorses Micah Lasher, as well as other local politicians and unions backing his candidacy.

“When people say: “I am voting for you,” what they really mean is: “I trust you to make the right decision based on incomplete information,” said Lasher in one of the debates. “That is a very responsible and at the same time moving burden.”

Another figure is Alex Bores, a former Palantir engineer, who has become the focus of substantial spending by PACs both in support of and against him. He noted: “This campaign remains very local; housing issues and other local concerns are real, but the winner will have an impact on the message for the entire chamber.”

“I can preserve respect for your family’s heritage, Jack, but at the same time I demand that you not diminish me as a candidate,” said one of the rivals. He also stressed that heritage should not be the sole argument in the campaign but should be paired with effectiveness and concrete actions.

According to people close to the campaign, Schlossberg often receives interview requests, but invitations are routed to his personal assistant, as he declines some traditional staff roles after the first weeks of the campaign.

In the closing days he repeats: “The time is now,” and expresses the belief that his positions could help bridge party divisions and find common ground with different generations, especially in light of recent events in the Middle East and in relations with Israel.

The candidate believes that his response to criticism and willingness to pursue an open approach to politics will help him endure the tests in the highly competitive Manhattan district, where every vote can matter.