Joe Kennedy III has formally declared his candidacy for the U.S. Senate, becoming the first member of the Kennedy political dynasty to run for the upper chamber of Congress from Massachusetts since his great-uncle Teddy back in 1962.

The 38-year-old Democrat - who already serves in the House of Representatives for Massachusetts's 4th congressional district - announced his intentions on Saturday.

Kennedy spoke revealed the news to supporters during a kickoff event in East Boston, the neighborhood where the Kennedy clan first settled after arriving from Ireland more than a century ago.

'Donald Trump has forced a long overdue reckoning in America, and how we respond will say everything about who we are,' Kennedy stated.

'We have to take on the broken system that gave rise to him in the first place - the outdated structures and old rules, the everyday oppression and injustices that hold our people back.'

Democratic Congressman Joseph Kennedy III has announced he is making a run for the US Senate. He is pictured in Boston on Saturday carrying his one-year-old son, James, kicking off his campaign

Joe Kennedy is a scion of America's most famous political family.

He is a grandson of Robert F. Kennedy, who served as a New York Senator and was running for the Democratic presidential nomination when he was assassinated in 1968.

He is also the great-nephew of President John F. Kennedy and the late Senator Ted Kennedy, who served as a Massachusetts Senator for 46 years until his death in 2009.

In order to serve in the Senate, Joe Kennedy III will face 73-year-old incumbent Ed Markey in next year's Democratic primary.

At Saturday's rally, Kennedy tried to distinguish himself from Markey, claiming he supports getting money out of politics, creating term limits for Supreme Court justices and abolishing the Electoral College.

However, Kennedy and Markey also have much in common. They both support the Green New Deal, and have called upon Congress to initiate impeachment proceedings against President Trump.

Kennedy kicked off his bid for Senate by making a dig at President Trump

Joe Kennedy is a scion of America's most famous political family. He is the grandson of late Senator Robert F. Kennedy (center), and a great-nephew of President John F. Kennedy (left) and Senator Teddy Kennedy (right)

Meanwhile, Liss-Riordan, a workers' rights lawyer, and Steve Pemberton, a former senior executive at Walgreens, are also set to challenge Markey for the Senate seat.

Some Democratic activists have said they're worried that a Senate primary between Markey and Kennedy could drain money and resources away from the party's top priority: defeating President Donald Trump.

However, Kennedy has brushed aside those concerns.

'Engaging more people in that process, bringing more voices to the table, fighting back against that - how is that a bad thing?' he stated on Saturday.

'People that are trying to say that this is going to divert resources - I just don't think that's the case.'

A Kennedy-Markey contest will put more than a few high-profile Democrats in an awkward position, most notably White House hopeful Elizabeth Warren.

A Kennedy-Markey contest will put more than a few high-profile Democrats in an awkward position, most notably White House hopeful Elizabeth Warren. Warren and Kennedy are pictured at the

Warren - who currently occupies the second Massachusetts Senate seat - has already formally endorsed Markey.

However, she also taught Kennedy whilst he was a student at Harvard Law School.

Given his political pedigree, Kennedy has been seen as a rising star in the party. In 2018, he was tapped to deliver the Democratic response to Trump's State of the Union address.

He was first elected to Congress in 2012, and currently lives in Boston with his wife, Lauren Birchfield, and their two young children, Ellie, three, and James, one.

According to Roll Call, Kennedy is one of the richest men in Congress, with a reported fortune of $20 million, most of which is inherited wealth.

While Kennedy may be the first in his extended family to run for Senate since the 1960s, several other of his relatives have served in other political offices.