Editing Kennedy family (section)

==Continued public service==
[[File:TheKennedyFamily1.jpg|thumb|left|[[Joseph P. Kennedy Sr.]] and [[Rose Kennedy]] with their children at the [[Kennedy Compound]] in 1931.]]
Every Kennedy elected to public office has served as a [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]], while other members of the family have worked for the party or held [[Cabinet of the United States|Cabinet]] posts in Democratic administrations. Many have attended [[Harvard University]], and the family has contributed greatly to that university's [[John F. Kennedy School of Government]].

Joseph Sr. expected his eldest son, Joseph Jr., to go into politics and to ultimately be elected president. Joseph Jr. was elected as a Massachusetts [[Delegate (American politics)|delegate]] to the [[1940 Democratic National Convention]] and enlisted in the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] after the United States entered [[World War II]]. He was killed in 1944 when the bomber he was piloting exploded in flight. Joseph Sr.'s desire to see the family involved in politics and government then focused on John, who had considered a career as a journalist, having authored a book (''[[Why England Slept]]'') and done some reporting for [[Hearst Newspapers]]. After returning from Navy service, John served in the [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House of Representatives]] representing [[Massachusetts's 11th congressional district]] from 1947 to 1953, and then as [[List of United States senators from Massachusetts|U.S. Senator from Massachusetts]] from 1953 to 1960. In the [[1960 United States presidential election|1960 presidential election]], John narrowly defeated [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] opponent [[Richard Nixon]].

During [[Timeline of the presidency of John F. Kennedy|John's administration]], Robert served as [[United States Attorney General|attorney general]], their brother-in-law [[Sargent Shriver]] served as director of the new [[Peace Corps]], and Ted [[1962 United States Senate special election in Massachusetts|became the U.S. Senator from Massachusetts]] until his death in 2009. The Kennedy administration's accomplishments include the [[Alliance for Progress]] with Latin America, the establishment of the Peace Corps, a peaceful resolution to the [[Cuban Missile Crisis]] in October 1962, the [[Nuclear Test Ban Treaty]] of 1963, the [[Twenty-fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution]] ending the [[poll tax]], the continuation of the [[Apollo program|Apollo spaceflight program]] with the goal of [[We choose to go to the Moon|landing a man on the Moon]], and the introduction of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]] to Congress (signed into law by Kennedy's successor [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]).<ref>{{cite web| url = https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/john-f-kennedy/| title = White House}}</ref> The family was the subject of intense media coverage during and after Kennedy's presidency.

Ted served in the Senate with his brother Robert (1965–1968), and was serving in the Senate when his nephew, [[Joseph P. Kennedy II|Joseph P. II]], and his son, [[Patrick J. Kennedy|Patrick J.]], served in the U.S. House of Representatives representing [[Massachusetts's 8th congressional district]] (1987–1999) and [[Rhode Island's 1st congressional district]] (1995–2011), respectively. In November 2012, [[Joe Kennedy III|Joseph P. Kennedy III]], son of former U.S. representative Joseph P. Kennedy II and grandson of former senior Robert F. Kennedy, was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from [[Massachusetts's 4th congressional district]]. In 2020, Joseph P. III lost the [[2020 United States Senate election in Massachusetts#Democratic primary|U.S. Senate primary election in Massachusetts]] to incumbent [[Ed Markey]], the first Kennedy to ever lose an election in the state.<ref name="jkiii-loses-primary">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/01/us/politics/ed-markey-kennedy.html|title=Markey Holds Off Joseph Kennedy in Massachusetts Senate Race|quote=The result was the first loss by a Kennedy in a Massachusetts election…|date=September 1, 2020|first=Jonathan|last=Martin|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Fast Facts about Robert F. Kennedy|url=https://www.jfklibrary.org/learn/about-jfk/the-kennedy-family/robert-f-kennedy/fast-facts-robert-f-kennedy|access-date=September 4, 2020|agency=John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum}} [[Robert F. Kennedy]] was not on the ballot in Massachusetts in the [[1968 Democratic Party presidential primaries]] and finished second to [[Eugene McCarthy]] as a write-in candidate.</ref>

In the 2020s, three Kennedy family members served as U.S. ambassadors or envoys. [[Victoria Reggie Kennedy]], second wife of Ted Kennedy, was named in 2021 by President [[Joe Biden]] as [[List of ambassadors of the United States to Austria|U.S. ambassador to Austria]].<ref>{{Cite news|last=Thanikachalam|first=Neya|title=Senate confirms Victoria Kennedy to be ambassador to Austria|newspaper=The Boston Globe|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/10/27/nation/senate-confirms-victoria-kennedy-be-ambassador-austria/ |access-date=January 1, 2023 }}</ref> [[Caroline Kennedy]], daughter of President Kennedy, was named in 2022 by President Biden as [[List of ambassadors of the United States to Australia|U.S. ambassador to Australia]]; she previously served as [[List of ambassadors of the United States to Japan|U.S. ambassador to Japan]] under President [[Barack Obama]]. In the same year, Joseph P. Kennedy III was named by President Biden as [[United States Special Envoy for Northern Ireland|U.S. special envoy to Northern Ireland]].

[[Robert F. Kennedy Jr.]] ran for president in the [[2024 United States presidential election]],<ref name="The Gavel">{{cite web |last1=Anderson |first1=Sophia |title=Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Announces 2024 Presidential Candidacy Against Biden |url=https://bcgavel.com/2023/05/03/robert-f-kennedy-jr-announces-2024-presidential-candidacy-against-biden/ |website=the Gavel |date=May 3, 2023 |access-date=17 June 2023}}</ref> originally as a Democrat, but changing his affiliation to Independent in October 2023. Family members spoke out against him, mainly due to his anti-vaccine views, and instead endorsed President [[Joe Biden]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=O'Donnell |first=Kelly |last2=Lebowitz |first2=Megan |last3=Richards |first3=Zoë |date=2024-04-18 |title=Kennedy family members endorse Biden over RFK Jr. |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/kennedy-family-members-endorse-biden-rfk-jr-rcna148303 |access-date=2024-11-14 |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref> In August 2024, two months before the election, Robert Jr. withdrew and endorsed [[Donald Trump 2024 presidential campaign|Republican candidate]] [[Donald Trump]], who won the election. Trump nominated him to be [[United States Secretary of Health and Human Services]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=McGraw |first=Meridith |last2=Cirruzzo |first2=Chelsea |date=November 14, 2024 |title=Trump expected to select Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead HHS |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2024/11/14/robert-f-kennedy-jr-trump-hhs-secretary-pick-00188617 |website=Politico}}</ref> and he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate by a vote of 52-48.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Steinhauser |first=Paul |date=2025-02-12 |title=Senate confirms Robert F Kennedy Jr. to serve as Trump's Health secretary |url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/senate-confirms-robert-f-kennedy-jr-serve-trumps-health-secretary |access-date=2025-02-13 |website=Fox News |language=en-US}}</ref>