Brother of slain Sandy Hook student to run for public office

NEWTOWN, Conn. — The 19-year-old brother of a Sandy Hook school shooting victim is running for the Connecticut Senate.

Republican JT Lewis of Newtown posted a video on Twitter Monday, announcing plans to challenge Republican Sen. Tony Hwang of Fairfield. The next legislative election is in 2020.

Hwang has served in the Senate since 2015 and previously in the House of Representatives.

Lewis recently finished his freshman year at the University of Connecticut and says he's running for office to honor his late brother, Jesse Lewis, one of the 20 first graders killed in 2012.

In his video, Lewis accuses political leaders of falling short of stopping the violence his family experienced. Lewis participated in a 2018 discussion on school security with President Donald Trump.