Edward Kennedy's widow urged to run for Senate

WASHINGTON — Nearly one year after Sen. Edward Kennedy's death, prominent Democrats are promoting his widow as the party's best shot at winning back the Senate seat he held for nearly five decades.

Victoria Reggie Kennedy has announced no plans to run, but the prospect of a candidacy has become a source of tension in the family, according to Kennedy intimates. Some relatives fear that a 2012 campaign against Republican Sen. Scott Brown — a popular figure even in liberal Massachusetts — would distract Kennedy from promoting her late husband's legacy, they said.

Vicki Kennedy, a lawyer from a powerful political family in Louisiana who married into the Kennedy dynasty in 1992, declined to be interviewed. She passed up the chance to run for the seat last year, and some close friends said she has told them she has no plans to run this time.

But in some respects, she is acting the part of a candidate, raising her public profile by campaigning for politicians across the country.

Some party leaders have been quietly promoting her as their preferred candidate. They believe her stature and the goodwill she earned after her husband's death Aug. 25 put her in a uniquely strong position.

"She'd be a superb candidate, no question," said Rep. William Delahunt, D-Mass., a close friend of Kennedy's. "Does she have it? Yeah, she's got it in spades. Anyone would tout her if you're trying to recruit candidates."

Phil Johnston, a former Massachusetts Democratic Party chairman, said: "Many Democrats have urged her to run, myself included, but she hasn't given any signal as to what her plans are."

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., is among those promoting her candidacy, according to several Democratic sources. He declined to comment.

Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., the youngest of Edward Kennedy's three children, declined to discuss his stepmother's possible political future but said he wished she would focus her energy on raising money for the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the Senate, a nonprofit organization that says it aims to inspire future leaders.

Like his brother, Edward Kennedy Jr. has expressed concern a campaign would distract her from the institute, people familiar with his thinking said. The sources would discuss the sensitive matter only on condition of anonymity.

Jack Connors, finance director of the EMK Institute, said Vicki Kennedy's political activities are "not at the expense of the institute." The tax-exempt, nonpartisan institute, to be built near the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston, has nearly met its $120 million fundraising goal, he said.

In the past year, Vicki Kennedy has given high-school- and college-commencement addresses across the country, accepted awards in Ireland and Washington, spoken at the Massachusetts Democratic convention and mingled at a dinner for Senate spouses.

This spring, she quietly lobbied wavering lawmakers to support the health-care overhaul, long a top priority for her husband.

She also co-hosted the annual Golden Tennis Shoes Awards ceremony for Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and a fundraiser for Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif. She is endearing herself in particular to Massachusetts Democrats, hosting events for Reps. Barney Frank, James McGovern, Richard Neal and Niki Tsongas, widow of the Sen. Paul Tsongas.

For Vicki Kennedy, the appearances are "intoxicating" said one family insider. "It's an ego trip," this source added, but also predicted that's where the flirtation will end.