Massachusetts U.S. Congressman Joe Kennedy III announced Saturday he is vying for the U.S. Senate seat held by Sen. Ed Markey for the last six years. As the state representative launches his campaign, he made a stop in Pittsfield for an intimate breakfast with voters on Sunday morning at Eat on North.

Kennedy's bid for Markey's Senate seat makes him the first member of the family from the Commonwealth to run for the upper chamber of Congress since his great-uncle, Ted Kennedy, did it in 1962. But, he says, he's not relying on his family's legacy to win this seat.

"This one's on me, and I gotta go out there and make the case as they did to be able to earn the trust, respect, and support of the people of Massachusetts, and I intend to do that," Kennedy said.

Kennedy says he made the decision to run to try and unseat a lawmaker with more than 40 years experience because it's time to make real change in Congress.

"If not now, when? What more needs to be at stake?" Kennedy said. "Donald Trump has created a reckoning across this country but it is not enough just to fight back against him. [There are] 63 million people [who] thought he was the right answer and if we are going to turn this country around, you gotta address a broken system that allowed him to win in the first place."

Kennedy's bid is divisive among his Democratic colleagues across the Commonwealth, but State Sen. Adam Hinds, who was on hand for Sunday's event, says he thinks Kennedy is the right choice.

"Obviously, it wasn't an easy decision to make right? We have an incumbent U.S. Senator, but it feels like there's a really important moment right now where we do need to change our system," Hinds said. "And so after a lot of consideration, I decided he's the one who brings the energy and will mobilize the young voters and beyond and I'm pretty excited to be with him."

Kennedy is running his platform as slightly more progressive than Markey, even though they line up on many issues. He's touting the Green New Deal and regional economic development, he wants to eliminate the electoral college, establish term limits, and eliminate PAC money, plus continue to fight for LGBTQ+ rights and immigration reform.

"This is about more than just voting record," Kennedy said. "And look, Senator Markey's a good man, but when it comes to those issues I discussed earlier about showing up, recognizing people's voices need to be at the table [is necessary] if you're gonna get the systemic change we need to break open this political system."

And Hinds says Kennedy is big on economic opportunity for the Berkshires, particularly where mass transit is concerned — something he believes is important to voters.

"Those transportation links we suffer from, quite honestly, [comes from] being the furthest away from the Capitol," Hind said. "And a lot of the jobs and economic opportunity are happening in the east, so he articulated that message today that we need to do more to make sure we're all benefiting from a good quality of life we're excited about."

Besides Kennedy's stop in Pittsfield, he made several stops across the state the last couple of days. The Congressman also has stops planned in Western and Central Massachusetts before heading back to Boston.