Eric Trump floated the idea lightly, but the undertone was unmistakably serious.
In an interview to the Financial Times last week, US President Donald Trump’s middle son Eric Trump hinted that he or someone else from the family could run for the White House when his father’s second term comes to an end. The 41-year-old co-executive vice-president of the Trump Organization has stayed away from politics so far, but said his political path to the Oval Office “would be an easy one” if he decided to choose it.
One might have liked to believe that political dynasties have fallen out of favour, and hence the notion that the Trump family might remain on the ballot even after Donald Trump’s current term in office is improbable, but Eric’s comments have revived the talks of a comparison that has surfaced periodically since 2016: Are the Trumps the Kennedys of the right? If another American political dynasty is taking shape, how does it stack up against the ‘Camelot’?
The questions are loaded with symbolism. The Kennedys, with their polished public service and an enduring legacy, embodied the Democratic Party’s post-war ascent. On the other hand, the Trumps, with their unapologetic populism, cable news dominance, and sprawling family brand, have remade the Republican Party in their own image.
Kennedys and Trumps: Historical Parallel of Wealth and Influence
Both the Kennedy and Trump families began with substantial wealth that laid the foundation for their influence in America. The Kennedys rose from Irish immigrant roots to political prominence starting with PJ Kennedy’s election to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1884, while the Trumps built a real estate empire beginning with Fred Trump Sr., whose fortune Donald Trump inherited and expanded.
Both families are known to have leveraged their wealth to gain social status and political power, creating recognisable family brands.
While the Kennedy model was built on public service, military valour, and legislative careers across generations—from JFK’s presidency to RFK’s Senate run and Ted Kennedy’s long Capitol Hill tenure—culminating in decades of Democratic influence, the Trump model is centred around brand and media influence. Trump’s children have served in informal or business-adjacent political roles, with a sharp focus on loyalty and visibility, and not public office experience.
If the Kennedys emphasised public policy, the Trumps emphasise media domination and grassroots fervour.
The comparison is not entirely whimsical.
The Kennedys built a political machine that spanned decades, beginning with patriarch Joseph P. Kennedy Sr.’s ambitions and culminating in the White House with John F. Kennedy in 1961. Even after JFK’s assassination, the family’s political footprint endured—through Robert, Teddy, and a host of younger generations who pursued public office.
The Trumps are, by contrast, a newer phenomenon. But they have already established a multigenerational presence in American politics. Donald Trump remains the central figure, and his children — particularly Donald Jr., Eric, and daughter-in-law Lara — have kept themselves visible in Republican circles.
While Ivanka Trump has stepped away from politics since her time as White House adviser during Trump’s first term, Don Jr. has remained one of the most vocal standard-bearers of the MAGA base. Lara Trump, Eric’s wife, has become a fixture in both party fundraising and conservative media, after co-chairing the Republican National Committee in the run-up to the 2024 presidential election. And Eric, who had so far been focussing more on the family business, has now suddenly stepped into the limelight with a comment that felt both provocative and calculated.
How Trump is like JFK
Not just the families, parallels have been drawn between Kennedy and Trump individually too for a long time now.
“John F. Kennedy and Donald J. Trump have more in common than devotees for either would want to admit,” Bob Strong, William Lyne Wilson, Professor of Politics at Washington and Lee, wrote in Newsweek in May 2017.
He elaborated how both Kennedy and Trump are the second sons of “successful and domineering fathers”, and how they “grew up in wealth and privilege, though outside the highest levels of social status”. Both Kennedy and Trump were said to have been “rebellious in school” and “reckless and cavalier in relations with women”, but eventually inherited “family dreams for wider acceptance”.
As young men, Wilson wrote, both Kennedy and Trump faced heavy criticism as they appeared to be hungry for publicity and had less interest in accomplishing anything substantial. None of the two were seen as potential presidential candidates, and they both fought opponents who had much more political experience in the race to the Oval Office.
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Political Brand and Public Persona
The Kennedys were known as America’s “royal family”, who blended politics with celebrity, glamour, and public service, which created a lasting cultural and political legacy.
Trump has similarly cultivated a highly visible brand, combining business celebrity with political populism. His use of media, from reality TV to social media, echoes JFK’s pioneering use of television, albeit with different styles and impacts. If Kennedy knew how to use TV, Trump is a master of the newer forms of political communication—from cable news to social media.
The Kennedy family placed multiple members in influential government positions, including ambassadorships and cabinet roles. Key appointments include brother Robert F. Kennedy, who was the US Attorney General from 1961 to 1964, and later Senator from New York from 1965 to 1968; brother Ted Kennedy, one of the longest-serving senators in US history (1962–2009); and brother-in-law Sargent Shriver, who served on multiple positions before being sent to France as US Ambassador (1968–1970). Four more Kennedy family members served as US ambassadors: Joseph P. Kennedy Sr (US Ambassador to the United Kingdom, 1938-1940); Jean Kennedy Smith (Ambassador to Ireland, 1993-1998); Caroline Kennedy (Ambassador to Japan, 2013-2017, and Ambassador to Australia, 2022-2024); and Victoria Reggie Kennedy, widow of Ted Kennedy, (Ambassador to Austria, 2022-2025).
Robert F. Kennedy Jr, RFF’s son, is the latest from the Kennedy family to enter the public office. He is currently serving as the 26th United States secretary of health and human services, in the Trump administration. Prior to him, RFK’s grandson Joseph Kennedy III served as the US Representatives for Massachusetts’s 4th congressional district from 2013 to 2021, and was later sent to Northern Ireland as Special Envoy in 2022 for two years.
The Trump family appears to have tried to mirror this by placing members in senior advisory and executive roles. Ivanka and Jared Kushner were prominent examples during Donald Trump’s first presidency.
Both families have attracted intense media scrutiny and public fascination, often symbolising broader American ideals and conflicts.
Trump’s frequent references to the Kennedys, including his admiration for JFK and comparisons between Melania Trump and Jacqueline Kennedy, indicate a conscious effort to associate with the Kennedy legacy’s glamour and political allure.
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Jacqueline Kennedy and Melania Trump
When Melania Trump appeared in a powder blue dress and long gloves during Donald Trump’s inauguration during his first term, many publications wrote how she seemed to be channeling Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, known for her classic style and sense of fashion. The comparison stayed. On one occasion, Donald Trump likened his wife to the popular former first lady, saying during an interview to Fox and Friends: “We have our own Jackie O today…it’s called Melania, Melania T.”
Controversies and Polarisation
While the Kennedys were often idealised, their family history is intertwined with numerous scandals and tragedies that have shaped their public image. From JFK’s sister Rosemary Kennedy being given a lobotomy by father Joseph Kennedy Sr. to repeated allegations of infidelity, to the Chappaquiddick incident, in which Ted Kennedy’s car accident led to a death of Mary Jo Kopechne, the family has drawn intense scrutiny. On the other hand, tragedies such as substance abuse and untimely deaths have further fuelled the myth of the “Kennedy curse”.
The Trump family’s political rise, meanwhile, has also been marked by controversy, divisive rhetoric, and polarised public opinion, reflecting a different but equally impactful form of political dynasty. For millions of Americans, however, that is enough. In a way, that is the very power of dynasties. For some, the Kennedys offered hope. For others, the Trumps offer defiance.
Whether this will translate into another Trump on the ballot in 2028 is anyone’s guess. Eric Trump made sure not to confirm anything outright. But his tone suggested the conversation is not idle.
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Other Political Dynasties In US
The Kennedys and the Trumps and not alone. Political dynasties have persisted in the US throughout history. Stephen Hess, a Brookings Institution scholar, wrote a book on them in 2015 — America’s Political Dynasties: From Adams to Clinton. In a 2009 Washington Post op-ed, Hess devised a scoring system to rank US political families dating back to 1789.
Hess’s methodology assigns point values based on the office held — 10 for a president or chief justice, 4 for a vice-president or House speaker, 3 for a senator or governor, 2 for a representative, and 1 for a cabinet member. Points are multiplied by the number of terms served, and an additional point is awarded for each individual family member and each generation involved. To qualify as a true “dynasty”, the family must span at least three generations in politics, with members connected by blood rather than marriage.
Accordingly, Kennedys topped the list.
In the second place was the Roosevelt family that gave two 2 presidents (Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin D Roosevelt), 1 vice president, 2 governors, and 4 representatives. While Hess’s list of political dynasts also included families with no president, the Harrisons (William Henry Harrison and grandson Benjamin Harrison), the Adams (John Adams and John Quincy Adams), the Bushes (George Bush and George W Bush), and William Howard Taft were the other presidents whose families made it to the list.
Despite towering cultural and political influence, the Trumps currently score just 20 points, entirely from Donald Trump’s two terms. That puts them well behind the Kennedys, the Roosevelts, and the Bushes in dynasty credentials, so far. However, any future Senate seat, governorship, or cabinet role for Trump family members would start to shift that tally upward.
