Lorne Michaels, Bette Midler and Mom Caroline Kennedy Among Early Donors to Jack Schlossberg's Competitive House Campaign
The primary election for New York’s 12th Congressional District will occur on June 23, 2026
Paloma Chavez
Mon, February 2, 2026 at 11:53 PM UTC
4 min read
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Patrick McMullan via Getty; Savion Washington/Getty; Charles Sykes/Bravo via Getty
NEED TO KNOW
Jack Schlossberg's competitive House campaign has early donors, including actor John Goodman and Schlossberg's mom, Caroline Kennedy
Schlossberg's campaign website, Jack for New York, said he’s “running for Congress because the best part of the greatest city on Earth needs to be heard loud and clear in Washington and deserves a representative who won't back down"
The primary election is scheduled for June 23
Jack Schlossberg's campaign for Congress is bringing in notable donors.
Schlossberg, 33, announced his campaign to represent New York’s 12th Congressional District in an email to supporters in November 2025 and in an interview with The New York Times that same month. He told the outlet he believes that a Democratic majority in the House of Representatives is needed to restore democratic norms.
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Schlossberg has so far gathered nearly $600,000 from over 200 supporters, according to the Federal Elections Commission. Actor John Goodman and his mom, Caroline Kennedy, are among the donors, alongside grassroots donations to the campaign.
Other donors include: Saturday Night Live executive producer Lorne Michaels, Bette Midler, Paul Simon, former White House press secretary Jay Carney and former HBO CEO Richard Plelper.
“There is nothing our party can’t do to address costs of living, corruption and the constitutional crisis that we’re in,” he told the Times in November. “But without the control of Congress, there’s almost nothing that we can do.”
Before announcing his run, Schlossberg, the only grandson of President John F. Kennedy and Jackie Kennedy, created a significant social media presence with a following to match.
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"I think that the internet is a place where it's difficult to break through, and it's difficult to break through, especially if you're not saying something that's controversial, or at least, somehow unexpected," Schlossberg explained to MSNBC's Jen Psaki in February 2025. "And I think that I see that Democrats play that game not as well as we could."
Schlossberg's journey into the spotlight began after his controversial relative, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., launched a long-shot presidential bid in 2023, even though the Kennedys had overwhelmingly rallied behind Democratic candidate Joe Biden.
Schlossberg accused RFK Jr. — an anti-vaccine activist and political outlier in the family — of using the Kennedy name for personal gain without advancing the work that his uncles and father, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, began. RFK Jr. now serves as President Donald Trump's Secretary of Health and Human Services.
"President John F. Kennedy is my grandfather and his legacy is important," Schlossberg told the Times while announcing his bid for Congress. "It’s about a lot more than Camelot and conspiracy theories. It’s about public service and courage. It’s about civil rights, the Cuban missile crisis, and landing a man on the moon.”
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"If my cousin, Bobby Kennedy Jr., cared about any of them, he would support Joe Biden, too," he added.
Schlossberg said he is “running for Congress because the best part of the greatest city on Earth needs to be heard loud and clear in Washington and deserves a representative who won't back down," according to his campaign website, Jack for New York.
He launched his campaign after Rep. Jerry Nadler announced his retirement from Congress, putting the coveted NY-12 House seat up for grabs after 14 terms, saying he wants “generational change” to follow him.
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Nadler, 78, later clarified his remarks after learning that Schlossberg was running.
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“Well, there’s nothing particularly good or bad about a Kennedy holding my seat," Nadler told CNN. "But the Kennedy, unlike Schlossberg, should be somebody with a record of public service, a record of public accomplishment, and he doesn’t have one."
Nadler predicted that Schlossberg "certainly is not going to be a major candidate."
Schlossberg is one of nine Democratic candidates vying to fill Nadler's seat in the competitive race for the Manhattan district. Other candidates include State Assemblymembers Alex Bores and Micah Lasher, Councilman Erik Bottcher, civil rights attorney Laura Dunn, attorney and journalist Jami Floyd, Alan Pardee, Liam Elkind and activist Cameron Kasky.
The primary is scheduled for June 23.
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