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Blue-state voters’ appetite for political change will be tested Tuesday in Massachusetts, with generational and ideological divides on display in several Democratic primaries.
The marquee contest is the Senate race, where 80-year-old incumbent Edward J. Markey is facing a challenge from 47-year-old Rep. Seth Moulton. Markey is a reliable progressive and has the backing of most members of the Massachusetts delegation, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Ayanna S. Pressley.
Moulton’s pitch has focused almost exclusively on Markey’s age, not his policies. “It’s time for a new generation of leadership to take on a new generation of challenges and opportunities,’’ he said at a recent campaign stop in Springfield, Mass.
Markey, who won 19 terms in the House before coming to the Senate in 2013, has focused on his liberal voting record and the advantages his seniority confers on the state. He has also criticized Moulton’s past comments regarding transgender athletes. (Following the 2024 election, Moulton told The New York Times that he didn’t want his daughters “getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete,” remarks he has since apologized for.)
