Edward Moore Kennedy

Kennedy, Edward Moore (1932– ), U.S. political leader, U.S. senator from Massachusetts since 1962. Like his brothers John and Robert, “Ted” Kennedy became a national leader of the Democratic party and an articulate advocate of liberal causes. His career suffered (1969) when a woman companion drowned after he drove his car off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island, near Martha's Vineyard, Mass. He unsuccessfully challenged Carter for the 1980 presidential nomination.