Key facts
- Massachusetts Democrats are holding primaries on Tuesday, featuring a contest between 80-year-old Senator Ed Markey and 47-year-old Representative Seth Moulton.
- A similar generational challenge is occurring in the Boston area, with 71-year-old Representative Stephen Lynch facing 39-year-old attorney Patrick Roath.
- Markey is backed by progressive figures like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, while Moulton has support from figures like Governor Mikie Sherrill and the VoteVets organization.
- The Boston Globe's editorial board endorsed Moulton for the Senate seat and Roath for the House seat.
- Markey leads Moulton in fundraising and polls by a double-digit margin.
Massachusetts Democrats are heading to the polls on Tuesday to decide on their nominees for a U.S. Senate seat and a House seat, with generational challenges playing out in both contests.
In the race for the U.S. Senate seat, 80-year-old progressive Senator Ed Markey is seeking renomination against 47-year-old U.S. Representative Seth Moulton. Markey, who has served in Congress for nearly five decades, has garnered support from prominent progressives such as Senator Bernie Sanders, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Senator Elizabeth Warren. Moulton, a moderate and U.S. Marine Corps veteran, has secured endorsements from New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill and the VoteVets organization. The Boston Globe's editorial board has backed Moulton, citing his leadership skills and alignment with voter positions.
Markey holds a significant fundraising advantage over Moulton, with nearly $2 million more in his campaign coffers, and has consistently led in recent polls by a double-digit margin. The winner of this primary is widely expected to win the general election in November, given that Democrat Kamala Harris carried Massachusetts by nearly 25 percentage points in 2024.
A similar dynamic is unfolding in the Boston-area House race, where 71-year-old moderate U.S. Representative Stephen Lynch is being challenged by 39-year-old progressive attorney Patrick Roath. The Boston Globe's editorial board endorsed Roath, suggesting he could be a more effective representative than Lynch, whom they described as "backbench representation."
Roath has out-raised Lynch, collecting $1.3 million compared to Lynch's $910,000. He has also significantly narrowed the gap in polling, with a recent survey showing Lynch's lead reduced to seven percentage points, a substantial shift from a February poll where Roath trailed by 26 points. Despite Lynch's substantial reelection margin of 50 points in 2024, the trend of Democratic voters nationwide favoring younger, more progressive candidates has led to the defeat of several incumbents in other states.