State Rep. Thomas P. O'Neill III announced Wednesday that he will seek the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor.

O'Neill, whose district includes portions of the Harvard campus, is the son of U.S. House Majority Leader Thomas P. O'Neill (D-Mass.).

O'Neill said yesterday that he considers himself a "unity candidate," by virtue of both his own contacts in the legislature and the political power of the family name.

"My father is 100 percent, I hesitate to say 1000 percent, behind me," O'Neill said. "He will support me all the way."

O'Neill faces competition from at least five other declared candidates. Charles P. Nolan, a campaign aide, called O'Neill the front runner and predicted that the strongest competition will come from state Democratic committeewoman Eva Hester and Boston City Councilor Christopher A. Iannella.

O'Neill said that the most important issues of the campaign will be the Massachusetts economy and integrity in government.

Citing a seven per cent rate of unemployment, O'Neill said that the state government ought to offer tax incentives to industries willing to locate in Massachusetts.

O'Neill called Watergate an "umbrella overshadowing Republican candidates." On the local level, public reaction to the scandal will be aimed only at the Republicans, he said, and not at incumbents as a whole.