Ed Markey Wins Massachusetts Democratic Senate Primary, Minogue Wins GOP Governor Primary
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The Story
Senator Ed Markey won the Massachusetts Democratic primary on Tuesday, securing his seat in the U.S. Senate. Markey, 80, defeated challenger Representative Seth Moulton, 47, by roughly 30 percentage points, with over 571,000 votes to Moulton's 308,000. Moulton conceded an hour after polls closed, offering Markey his full support as the Democratic nominee. Raymond La Raja, a political science professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, noted Markey's high approval among women, men, progressives, and young people. Markey, the Senate author of the Green New Deal and a co-sponsor of Bernie Sanders' 2017 Medicare for All Act, flexed endorsements from Sanders, Senator Elizabeth Warren, and Representative Ayanna Pressley. Moulton's campaign focused on Markey's age and sought to position himself as a fresh voice, but his argument for generational change did not resonate with state voters. Markey will face Republican nominee John Deaton and third-party socialist candidate Joe Tache in the fall. In the Massachusetts governor's race, Republican candidate Mike Minogue won Tuesday's primary and is set to face Governor Maura Healey in November. Minogue secured over 75% of the vote, defeating Brian Shortsleeve by more than 50 points. Healey was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Minogue, a former CEO of Abiomed and a U.S. Army combat veteran who served in Iraq during Operation Desert Storm in 1991, thanked his supporters, stating, this is more than a campaign; this is a movement. Shawn Oliver, previously Shortsleeve's running mate, moved to Minogue's ticket as the sole Republican left in the lieutenant governor's race. Shortsleeve endorsed Minogue after his loss. A University of New Hampshire poll for the general election shows Healey leading Minogue by 24 points. Dan Koh, a former top aide to President Joe Biden, won a crowded Democratic primary to succeed Representative Seth Moulton in Massachusetts’s 6th Congressional District, receiving 41.1% of the vote. Koh, who previously served as a selectman in Andover and chief of staff to former Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, embraced his ties to the Biden administration and received endorsements from both Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris.
The Spread
Contested
What they agree on
- Senator Ed Markey won the Massachusetts Democratic primary for his U.S. Senate seat, defeating Representative Seth Moulton.
- Markey, 80, defeated Moulton, 47, by approximately 30 percentage points.
- Republican candidate Mike Minogue won the Massachusetts gubernatorial primary and will face Governor Maura Healey in November.
- Governor Maura Healey was unopposed in the Democratic primary for governor.
- Dan Koh won the Democratic primary for Massachusetts’s 6th Congressional District, succeeding Representative Seth Moulton.
Where they split
- The Boston Globe provides town-by-town maps illustrating how Markey's victory over Moulton compared to his 2020 win over Joseph Kennedy III.
- The Washington Examiner emphasizes that Markey's win shows Democrats prioritize "leftism over youth" and highlights Dan Koh's Biden endorsement.
- Time and The Daily Caller frame the Markey-Moulton race as a "generational showdown" and a "rare win for the old guard" against a trend of younger candidates defeating older incumbents.
- The Japan News (Yomiuri Shimbun) specifically frames the Massachusetts Democratic primaries as a "test on generational change."
Source Perspectives
Left10 sources
Center12 sources