An 80-Year-Old Senator Beats the 47-Year-Old Congressman Who Ran on Generational Change by Roughly Two to One — Ed Markey Says "Tonight Is a Testament to the Power of the Progressive Movement," and Seth Moulton Says the Conversation Still Needed Having
On September 1, 2026, Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) beat Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) in the Massachusetts Democratic Senate primary, taking roughly two-thirds of the vote. It was the most direct test yet of the generational-change argument that has been running through Democratic primaries all cycle — and the incumbent won it going away. Moulton, 47, built his challenge on the proposition that Markey, 80, is too old for another six-year term, invoking Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Dianne Feinstein and Joe Biden as cautionary tales. Markey answered by consolidating the left: Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez all endorsed him, and he campaigned on the same young-progressive coalition that saved him from Joe Kennedy III in 2020. In his victory speech in downtown Boston he called the win a "testament to the power of the progressive movement of our nation," told the crowd "there is a big blue wave coming to drown out all those red MAGA hats," and answered the age question directly — "I'm always the youngest guy in the room when it comes to new ideas." Moulton conceded the night of the primary, said he had called Markey to congratulate him, and pledged his full support for the general election while refusing to retract the argument he had run on. His House seat in the 6th District is now open. Markey advances to the November 3 general election against Republican John Deaton, in a state he carried with 66 percent in 2020. Elsewhere on the ballot, incumbents held: Rep. Richard Neal survived his primary in the 1st District, and Mike Minogue won the Republican gubernatorial primary to face Gov. Maura Healey.
“Tonight is a testament to the power of the progressive movement of our nation.”