BOSTON — Sen. Ed Markey defeated Rep. Seth Moulton in the Democratic Senate primary in Massachusetts on Tuesday, and Rep. Stephen Lynch turned back a progressive challenger in the state's 8th Congressional District, leaving the party's long-serving incumbents in place and blunting the generational push that has unseated older Democrats in other states this year.
Markey, 80, will face Republican John Deaton in November as he seeks a third full term. Moulton, 47, a Marine Corps veteran elected to the House in 2014, made the case for new leadership the centerpiece of his campaign, arguing Markey did not understand challenges like artificial intelligence. Voters in the deep-blue state sided with the incumbent by a wide margin.
What voters returned
Lynch, 71, defeated 39-year-old lawyer Patrick Roath in the Boston-area 8th District, a seat Lynch has held since 2001. In the 1st District, 77-year-old Rep. Richard Neal, first elected in 1988, held off 39-year-old public school teacher Jeromie Whalen. Reps. Katherine Clark and Jake Auchincloss also advanced.
The lone open seat was Moulton's, and Democrats picked former Biden White House aide Dan Koh to succeed him in the 6th District. Koh was endorsed by former President Joe Biden, former Vice President Kamala Harris and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
The Markey pitch
Markey ran as the more progressive candidate, drawing endorsements from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders. He called for Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and an end to U.S. military action in Iran.
"Tonight is a testament to the power of the progressive movement of our nation," Markey told supporters, CBS News reported.
Moulton conceded and endorsed Markey. "Challenging the establishment and calling for a new generation of leadership isn't easy, but it is necessary," he said. "We started conversations that needed to happen."
The other read
Fox News described the night as an establishment flex rather than a progressive sweep, noting that voters kept incumbents across the party's factions and that Republicans failed to field House nominees in four districts — the 1st, 2nd, 5th and 7th. Rep. Ayanna Pressley will run unopposed in November, and the GOP will contest only five of the state's nine House seats. Businessman Michael Minogue, who defeated Brian Shortsleeve for the gubernatorial nomination, will challenge Democratic Gov. Maura Healey.
Markey and Deaton advance to a November general election that Democrats are heavily favored to win.