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Joe Kennedy III rules out run for House

E-mail|Link|Comments () February 28, 2010 02:33 PM

By Susan Milligan, Globe Staff

WASHINGTON -- Joseph P. Kennedy III will not run for Congress this year, the assistant district attorney said in an interview today, ending speculation that he would seek the 10th District seat if Representative William Delahunt retires.

Kennedy, the son of former US Representative Joseph P. Kennedy and grandnephew of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy, said he was very happy in his current job as an assistant district attorney for the Cape and Islands and did not want to leave that position yet.

``I think that we've got a great congressman. He continues to serve the people of the 10th district well,'' Kennedy told the Globe. ``I'm a longtime supporter of his, and I hope he runs again.''

Kennedy said he wasn't ruling out a run for public office in the future, but wanted to stay in the DA's office for now.

``Elective office and public service are obviously something that have long ties with my family, and something I'm definitely interested in. Right now, I've got a job I love, and hope to get better at,'' Kennedy said.

Kennedy said he had been approached by Democrats about running when rumors began to circulate that Delahunt would retire.

Delahunt has said repeatedly -- and as recently as Thursday, in a brief interview with the Globe -- that he reconsiders whether to run in March of every election year, and has not yet decided whether he will seek another term.