NORWICH, Conn. (AP) ? Former U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy says his Connecticut-based brother, Ted Kennedy Jr., is considering running for the Massachusetts Senate seat that will become vacant if U.S. Sen. John Kerry is confirmed as the nation’s next Secretary of State.

Patrick Kennedy told The Associated Press on Saturday that his 51-year-old brother Ted has been receiving calls from their late father’s friends, including former Connecticut Gov. Lowell Weicker Jr., urging him to consider running in the anticipated special election.

Messages were left seeking comment with Ted Kennedy Jr., who lives in Branford. He has campaigned for Connecticut candidates, most recently successful Democratic senate candidate Chris Murphy.

Patrick Kennedy said his brother, president of a financial services firm, owns the Hyannis, Mass., home once owned by the late President John F. Kennedy.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.