Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., defeated Rep. Seth Moulton in Tuesday’s Democratic Senate primary, turning back a challenge built around generational change with an appeal to progressive voters that has become the hallmark of his later political career.
Moulton, 33 years younger than the 80-year-old Markey, ran a campaign focused on new leadership for the party. Markey countered by positioning himself as the race’s true progressive and repeatedly questioned Moulton’s credentials on issues including transgender rights in sports, a topic many Democrats have avoided discussing publicly since the 2024 elections.
“Trans athletes should be able to play,” Markey told The New York Times. “That reflects Massachusetts and who we are. And Seth Moulton does not.”
Moulton had argued that Democrats’ stance on the issue contributed to the party’s losses across the country in 2024. Republicans have used the issue as a campaign talking point as Democrats work to flip control of both chambers of Congress.
Progressive groups rally behind Markey
Markey’s record on climate policy, including his continued push for a Green New Deal, drew support from groups popular with younger voters. The Sunrise Movement, which describes itself as a “movement of young people fighting fascism to win a Green New Deal,” celebrated the result.
“VICTORY! Congratulations to Ed Markey on his victory in Massachusetts tonight. Sen. Markey has been a leading climate champion in the fight for a Green New Deal to create jobs and lower costs for working people,” the group said in a statement posted to X.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., 84, also praised the win.
“Congratulations to Ed Markey on his landslide victory in the Democratic Massachusetts Senate primary. Ed knows that, at a time of massive income and wealth inequality, Congress must take on the billionaires and fight for working families,” Sanders wrote.
Twitch streamer and activist Hasan Piker, who has backed several progressive challengers to moderate Democrats, framed the outcome as proof that ideology mattered more to voters than age.
“It’s very clear that the Dem voters care more about policies and having a progressive represent them in the Senate than age! Another w for our movement!” Piker wrote on X.
A political transformation
David Axelrod, the longtime political consultant and former adviser to President Barack Obama, noted that Markey wasn’t always aligned with the party’s left flank. Axelrod credited Markey’s ideological shift for his continued political success.
“[Ed Markey] was first elected to Congress 50 yrs ago as a social conservative, opposed to abortion rights and school busing,” Axelrod wrote on X. “Now 80, he’s likely to sail in tonight’s primary in MA, despite his age, because, in his Golden Years, he’s grabbed on to the Green New Deal, Medicare for All, trans rights and other marquee priorities of the Left, undergirding himself against younger, more moderate challengers in very blue MA.”
Markey now advances to the Nov. 3 general election, where he is heavily favored in the deep-blue state. In his last reelection bid, he defeated Republican attorney Kevin O’Connor by a margin of 66.2% to 33.0%.
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