Edward J. Kennedy Jr. is an American politician, and member of the Massachusetts Senate from the 1st Middlesex district. Which includes the towns of Lowell, Groton, Dunstable, Pepperell, Townsend, Ashby, and a precinct in Ayer and Devens. He has previously served as the 90th Mayor of Lowell, non-consecutively as a member of the Lowell City Council from to, and also served as a Middlesex County Commissioner. Kennedy served on the city council for Lowell, Massachusetts from 1978 through 1985, and on the county commission for Middlesex County, Massachusetts from 1992 through 1996. After his time on the Lowell City Council and Middlesex Commission, he decided to run for Middlesex CountySheriff in 1996. Kennedy lost the Democratic nomination to Sheriff James DiPaola. He tried another run in 1998, but lost the nomination to DiPaola, once more. He was again elected to the Lowell City Council in 2011, after a 27 year hiatus from it, and a 13 year hiatus from politics. Then he was re-elected again in 2014, 2016, and 2018. But, during his third-straight term in 2016, he was elected to be Lowell's 90th Mayor after the City Council's 9-0 vote. After his stint as Mayor, and with 20 years of government experience in his back pocket, Kennedy decided to run for higher office. After a close fought Democratic Primary. Then a swift general election night win, he was elected to the Massachusetts Senate. Kennedy was sworn in on January 2, 2019.
"Kennedy began his political career when he won a seat on the Lowell City Council in 1977, at the age of 26. At that time the city was at a crossroads. The once-bustling home of the Industrial Revolution had fallen on desperate economic times, the landscape dotted by hulking vacant mill buildings and an increase in blight, arson, and drug crimes in the neighborhoods." "He served four terms on the Council from 1978-1985, fighting to keep property taxes reasonable and to improve city services for those who stayed in the city, while helping to steer the city into its economic and cultural renaissance. Those years saw the establishment of the Lowell National Historical Park, the construction of the Hilton Hotel and the Wang Training Center downtown, the renovation of the Wannalancit Mills and other former industrial spaces, an influx of federal funds to improve the city’s housing stock and prevent neighborhood blight, and the arrival of thousands of Cambodian refugees, all important pieces of changing the face and future of the city." "From 1992-1996, Kennedy served in a regional capacity as a Middlesex County Commissioner." "He returned to the Lowell City Council in 2012, where he was a strong proponent of the city conducting tax lien auctions to recoup back taxes owed to the city. In August 2012, the city took in $1.3 million in what had been lost revenue from the sale of tax liens and taxes paid by property owners who did not want their liens to go to auction." "Kennedy has continued to be a leading voice for economic development initiatives and environmental policy on the City Council. He served as Mayor in the 2016-2018 term, during which time he was an outspoken and unwavering leader in the fight to keep Lowell High School downtown. His level-headed leadership guided the city through one of the most contentious battles in the city’s history." "He has served as the representative to the Northern Middlesex Council of Governments, chairs the City Council’s Economic Development and Education Partnerships subcommittees and is a member of the City Council’s Arts & Culture, Downtown Redevelopment, Environment & Flood Issues, Municipal Facilities, Zoning, and Ad-Hoc Election Laws subcommittees."
Current committee membership
Kennedy currently serves on seven legislative committees in the Massachusetts Legislature:
