WASHINGTON: U.S. Senator Ed Markey on Tuesday defeated Representative Joe Kennedy III in the Massachusetts Democratic primary and is positioned to win another six-year term in the general election on Nov. 3 that would give him a platform for his progressive agenda.
With his unsuccessful challenge, Kennedy became the first member of his fabled political family to suffer a defeat in a Massachusetts election for a congressional seat.
When he made his surprise announcement last September that he would try to unseat fellow Democrat Markey, Kennedy was seen as a favorite.
But Markey, who has been at the forefront of liberal causes ranging from stopping nuclear weapons proliferation to imposing strict new carbon emissions standards to curb climate change, mounted an aggressive campaign that was bolstered by progressive stars such as fellow Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
In public opinion polls, Markey, 74, was capturing the support of young voters in his run against Kennedy, 39, the grandson of slain Senator Robert F. Kennedy. His grand-uncle was President John F. Kennedy.
Meanwhile, the New York Times declared U.S. Representatives Richard Neal and Stephen Lynch, also of Massachusetts, the winners in their primary bids to hold onto their House of Representatives seats in November.
Both lawmakers turned back challenges from progressive candidates, despite progressive victories in other states’ primary races earlier this year.
Masschusetts Democrats and Republicans were choosing nominees for nine U.S. House seats and one Senate seat.
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