{"id":241510,"date":"2026-05-23T05:34:25","date_gmt":"2026-05-23T05:34:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/241510\/"},"modified":"2026-05-23T05:34:25","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T05:34:25","slug":"manhattan-liberals-could-elect-a-kennedy-to-congress-in-manhattan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/241510\/","title":{"rendered":"Manhattan liberals could elect a Kennedy to Congress in Manhattan"},"content":{"rendered":"

NEW YORK \u2212 New York’s 12th Congressional District<\/a> encompasses the heart of Manhattan. There’s the gayborhood-turned-tech haven of Chelsea<\/a>, Times Square tourist traps<\/a> and corporate headquarters, plus the posh Upper East and West Sides<\/a>, home to the rich and famous.<\/p>\n

So who could be a more fitting congressional representative for the liberal-leaning, affluent district than a Kennedy<\/a>?<\/p>\n

While some early polls showed Jack Schlossberg<\/a>, grandson of former President John F. Kennedy, leading the crowded field to replace retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler<\/a>, the race has become hotly competitive.<\/p>\n

Ahead of the June 23 Democratic primary, which will determine the overwhelming favorite in the heavily Democratic district, Schlossberg is far from guaranteed his party’s nomination, which once seemed like a foregone conclusion.<\/p>\n

The candidate enjoyed early media hype<\/a> and a nine-point lead in late February and early March, according to one survey commissioned by a Democratic opponent<\/a>.<\/p>\n

See Jack Schlossberg, John F. Kennedy’s grandson, step into the political spotlight<\/p>\n

1 of 18<\/p>\n

(Brendan McDermid, REUTERS)<\/p>\n

But that lead has slipped. A recent Emerson College Polling\/PIX 11 survey, published May 21,<\/a> showed state Assemblyman Micah Lasher with 22% support and Assemblyman Alex Bores, from the other side of Central Park, with 20% support. Schlossberg trailed in third with 11%, and George Conway, a “Never Trump” former Republican cable news commentator, had 10% support.<\/p>\n

The race features nostalgia for JFK’s short-lived “Camelot,” but also the debates in current Democratic politics: how to combat the Trump administration’s sweeping changes to the federal government, declining support for Israel and a fight for AI regulation.<\/p>\n

“If Jack Schlossberg were not a Kennedy, we would not be talking about him, right?” Chris Coffey, a Democratic strategist who supports Lasher, told USA TODAY. He said the district, which is among the wealthiest and most educated in the country, is likely to see through Schlossberg’s thin resume.<\/p>\n

“Where his votes go will decide who wins this race,” Coffey said.<\/p>\n

A new kind of Kennedy<\/p>\n

Schlossberg, 33, is best known for being the tall, handsome son of former Ambassador Caroline Kennedy, President Kennedy’s only surviving child.<\/p>\n

He gained a large social media following for odd antics<\/a>, such as asking whether Second Lady Usha Vance was hotter than his grandmother, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Before that, he posted a video of himself<\/a> riding on a RipStik reciting Lord Byron’s lyric poem, “She walks in beauty.” In another, he called his uncle Robert F. Kennedy Jr.<\/a>‘s failed 2024 presidential campaign<\/a> an “embarrassment.” Kennedy is now the health secretary in the Trump administration.<\/p>\n

Like many in his family, Schlossberg boasts impressive academic credentials, including a degree from Harvard Law School. But his work experience is thin. In government, he worked in the State Department while his mother was an ambassador for a few months. He also held temporary jobs in Japan at Rakuten, the e-commerce company, and the Suntory distillery. He spoke at the 2024 Democratic National Convention.<\/p>\n

Schlossberg’s campaign has leaned heavily on reviving his family legacy as a pillar of Democratic politics, with the slogan, “Believe in Something Again.” But he’s also pledged not to take PAC money, saying it inevitably compromises politicians. In addition, he has promised to provide tax deductions for renters.<\/p>\n

Like many liberal Democrats, Schlossberg has opposed offensive military aid for Israel. Bores and Lasher both support continued U.S. military aid to Israel in a district that has a large Jewish population. Schlossberg, who is half-Jewish, supports funding Israel’s defensive Iron Dome system.<\/p>\n

\"Jack<\/p>\n

Jack Schlossberg speaks during Fortune CEO Initiative New York Dinner on March 18, 2026, in New York City.<\/p>\n

New York magazine reported<\/a> on one of Schlossberg’s campaign events, a March Madness watch party that skewed heavily female and younger.<\/p>\n

Some prominent figures have donated to his campaign, including “Saturday Night Live” executive producer Lorne Michaels, the musician Paul Simon and former Secretary of State Antony Blinken, according to election filings. He also received the endorsement of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi<\/a>, the 86-year-old Democratic icon who met Schlossberg\u2019s grandfather.<\/p>\n

But amid endorsements from public figures, Schlossberg has recently been the subject of critical media coverage from The New York Times<\/a> that reported high turnover inside his campaign and allegations of erratic behavior.<\/p>\n

Schlossberg\u2019s campaign didn\u2019t respond to USA TODAY’s requests for interviews.<\/p>\n

While in the past, Kennedys could cruise to victory in any Democratic primary in the Northeast, like Schlossberg’s great-uncle Robert F. Kennedy in New York’s 1964 Senate race, that may no longer be the case.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s unclear if the Kennedy name will help much,\u201d Basil Smikle, a Columbia University professor and former state Democratic Party executive director, said in an email, \u201cand in some respects, the dynamics favor the two candidates who already represent the area: Bores and Lasher.\u201d<\/p>\n

Legislative power to fight Trump<\/p>\n

If Schlossberg epitomizes the swashbuckling heir, Lasher is the archetypal normal politician whose opportunity he would usurp.<\/p>\n

If endorsements mean anything anymore, Lasher would win by a large margin. In addition to Nadler, the 17-term congressman, Lasher is also endorsed by Gov. Kathy Hochul, former Mayor Mike Bloomberg, former Gov. David Paterson and a long list of city and state Democratic officials.<\/p>\n

Schlossberg worked as an aide to Nadler, a state legislative affairs director for Bloomberg\u2019s City Hall and a policy director under Hochul, before he ran for Assembly in 2024. In March, Bloomberg, a billionaire who has spent heavily in local elections<\/a>, funneled $5 million into the Stand for New York super PAC for the primary.<\/p>\n

At a diner where Lasher entered shaking hands with patrons, he told USA TODAY that voters wanted someone they could trust to actually fight against President Donald Trump<\/a> more than the Democratic Party has done in the past.<\/p>\n

\"In<\/p>\n

In this 2022 file photo, Micah Lasher, center, speaks at the Riverside Park Conservancy Spring Benefit in New York City alongside current city Comptroller Mark Levine, left.<\/p>\n

\u201cI often say to voters that I meet that the Democratic Party needs to locate its spine, and I want to lead the search party,\u201d Lasher, 44, said after eating breakfast.<\/p>\n

Lasher said he knows how to use legislative processes to make change, citing past work on public health, immigration and voting rights.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not a tech bro, and I\u2019m not a TikTok influencer,\u201d he said, in apparent reference to Bores and Schlossberg. \u201cI am a legislative fighter, and that is the job that we are all running for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lasher has put together a roadmap for Democrats called \u201cProject 2026,\u201d a nod to the Heritage Foundation\u2019s \u201cProject 2025\u201d that offered priorities for the second Trump administration. “Project 2026” is a playbook for oversight and investigations Democrats could launch if they take control of the House.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, he also said Democrats need an \u201caffirmative agenda\u201d for people to believe in, which he said must focus on economic concerns, including housing, childcare, healthcare, jobs and wages.<\/p>\n

\u201cVoters shouldn\u2019t have to choose between experience and know-how and having a fighting spirit,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd with me, they don\u2019t have to make that choice.\u201d<\/p>\n

AI arms race<\/p>\n

In an interview with USA TODAY over coffee near Grand Central Terminal, Bores, 35, argued his tech industry experience makes him the best-qualified candidate. Bores touts his computer science degree, the first of any Democrat elected in the state Assembly. He worked at Palantir Technologies before having a fallout over its contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a race about who is best fit to serve the voters of this district going forward, not about who comes from the most storied family or the most storied political machine or whoever the establishment is going with,\u201d Bores said. \u201cIt’s about who can put a forward-looking vision.<\/p>\n

His hallmark 2025 Responsible AI Safety and Education (RAISE) Act<\/a>, which requires AI developers to create and publish safety protocols and allows civil action against developers who don’t submit required reporting or make false statements, is among the strongest state-level regulations of artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump issued an executive order<\/a> seeking to override states’ AI legislation to make sure the field would be “free to innovate without cumbersome regulation.”<\/p>\n

\"New<\/p>\n

New York State Assemblyman Alex Bores, a Manhattan Democrat, attends the Human Rights Campaign 2026 Greater New York Dinner on Feb. 7, 2026, in New York City.<\/p>\n

A super PAC associated with OpenAI\u2019s leaders pledged to spend millions on attack ads against Bores. Leading the Future, a super PAC funded by tech billionaire Trump donors Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz<\/a> and Greg Brockman<\/a>, announced in November it would first target Bores<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Public First super PAC associated with OpenAI rival Anthropic, which has appeared more supportive of regulation, has contributed heavily toward Bores.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a race where we\u2019re all promising to fight Donald Trump,\u201d Bores said, \u201cI am the only one that Donald Trump\u2019s mega-donors are spending millions of dollars against.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bores said he also sees AI\u2019s local harms. The district has a high concentration of white-collar workers, many of whom are at risk of AI replacing many of their jobs, he said.<\/p>\n

Our Revolution, the progressive organization founded by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, endorsed Bores. Joseph Geevarghese, who heads Our Revolution, said the race is a proxy war between different factions of the tech industry. Geevarghese said \u201cbig tech oligarchs\u201d don\u2019t want AI regulation and see Bores as a threat to implement consumer guardrails on an emerging industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cUltimately, this is about the grassroots versus tech titans,\u201d Geevarghese said. \u201cThe level of outside spending, especially from tech interests, speaks to why this is such a significant race. Again, this is an area that we don\u2019t have a strong leader in Congress\u00a0who has shown an ability to hold big tech accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n

‘Never Trump’ cable news stardom<\/p>\n

Conway, a 62-year-old former Republican lawyer who gained notoriety on cable news and social media as a “Never Trump,” entered the Manhattan race<\/a> in January.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just feel that I haven\u2019t done enough,\u201d Conway, who was married to senior Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway, previously told the New York political news outlet City & State<\/a>. \u201cAnd I think this particular moment, because so much is at stake, really requires people who are very laser-focused on fighting autocracy.\u201d<\/p>\n

His focus appears to have been on safeguarding democracy. His campaign website<\/a> also said Trump has made Americans’ lives worse, including with rising costs and healthcare due to cuts to the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"George<\/p>\n

George Conway, a conservative American attorney and long-time critic of Donald Trump, announced on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2025, he is running in what will be a closely-watched Democratic primary in New York’s 12th district.<\/p>\n

Conway\u2019s campaign didn\u2019t respond to interview requests.<\/p>\n

Now that he’s moved into the mayor’s official residence, state Board of Elections records show New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is a Democratic voter in the district. However, he has yet to endorse anyone in the race.<\/p>\n

Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Reach him by email at\u00a0emcuevas1@usatoday.com<\/a>\u00a0or on Signal at emcuevas.01.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Democratic congressional primary with Kennedy scion heats up in NYC<\/a><\/p>\n