All in the family: In 2026, a surge of politicians' kids are running for office

WASHINGTON - Dozens of members are nearing the end of their congressional careers and hanging up their voting cards. But for some, their family’s political legacies will continue, as their kids and relatives run for office in 2026. In the crowded Maine governor’s race alone, there are three contenders who are political scions: Democrat Angus King III, the son of independent Sen. Angus King; Democrat Hannah Pingree, the daughter of Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine; and Republican Jonathan Bush, the nephew and cousin of the two Bush presidents. While the trend is hardly new, this campaign cycle already features a number of notable races involving candidates who are related to former or current politicians. In New Hampshire, retiring Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen’s daughter, Stefany Shaheen, has launched a bid for an open House seat. Across the country, former Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s daughter, Christine Pelosi, is running for a state Senate seat in California. And in Georgia, the son of former GOP Rep. Jack Kingston, Jim Kingston, is running for his dad’s old House seat. Chellie Pingree said it has been both “heart-warming and terrifying” to watch her daughter, a former speaker of the Maine House of Representatives, enter the political arena. But she also said it’s only “natural” to see the next generation of public servants following in some of their parents’ footsteps. “I’m at the other end of my career. I’m closer to retirement, obviously, than the beginning. You get to a certain age, and your kids are grown up in their own careers,” she told NBC News. “Angus is probably in his last term in the Senate, and Jeanne is retiring. So it’s sort of natural that our children would be at the age to run for Congress.” Asked if she encouraged her daughter to run, Pingree said: “Oh, God, no!” But she added: “She’s got her own political experiences, and this was a decision she had to make on her own with her family.” Angus King III told NBC News he’s learned a lot of lessons from his father, such as the importance of reaching across the aisle, as well as how rewarding a career in politics can be in having a “huge and positive impact on people’s lives.” “Sometimes people use the shorthand of, ‘Well, he’s the senator’s son,’” King III said, going on to analogize his situation to that of Hall of Fame hockey player Wayne Gretzky’s son when he decided to play high school hockey. “You still have to skate. You still have to shoot the puck. You still have to grind it out in the corner. There’s no real advantage from the name on the back of your jersey.” “The advantage is you’ve had this example of integrity, of caring for the people of Maine in this deep way, this commitment to service and the perspective of how we get things done, how do we help the most people,” King III continued. Noting his fellow political scions embarking on their campaigns, King...

Preview: ~500 words