BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts congressional hopeful Joseph P. Kennedy III tells delegates in Charlotte, N.C., at the Democratic National Convention that his late uncle, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, “is here with us this evening.”

Joe Kennedy is a candidate for the seat of retiring Rep. Barney Frank. He hopes to be the first family member in Congress since Edward Kennedy’s death in 2009 and the retirement of his son, Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy.

Kennedy introduced a video Tuesday night honoring his uncle, whose speech as he battled brain cancer stirred delegates in 2008.

WATCH: Tribute To Ted Kennedy At DNC

Kennedy said “politics was always about people” for his uncle. He recalled campaigning with him in Texas for Barack Obama, when his uncle greeted the handful of voters in a small border town by belting out a ranchero song in Spanish with “a strong Boston accent.”

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.