Portal:United States/Selected biography/14
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Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy (born February 22, 1932) is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. In office since November 1962, Kennedy is the second-longest serving member of the Senate, after President pro tempore of the United States Senate Robert Byrd of West Virginia. The most prominent living member of the Kennedy family, he is the younger brother of President John F. Kennedy and Senator Robert F. Kennedy, both of whom were assassinated, the former on November 22, 1963, the latter on June 5, 1968. He is also the father of Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy. Ted Kennedy is a staunch advocate of liberal principles, and is one of the most influential and enduring icons of his party.
Since his presidential bid, Kennedy has become one of the most recognizable and influential members of the party. In 2004, Kennedy was involved in the failed presidential bid of his fellow Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, speaking for Kerry multiple times and lending his chief of staff, Mary Beth Cahill, to the Kerry campaign.
Kennedy stated that he would have supported Kerry should he have chosen to run for president in 2008. On January 28, 2008, Kennedy endorsed Senator Barack Obama in his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. This was despite efforts from the Hillary Clinton campaign, including a personal effort by former President Bill Clinton, to stop the endorsement.
