Three veteran Democrats won Massachusetts primary renomination Tuesday, with Senator Ed Markey, 80, and Representatives Richard Neal, 77, and Stephen Lynch, 71, all advancing toward likely reelection.
Markey beat Representative Seth Moulton, 47, even after age became a campaign issue, showing Democratic voters were unwilling to punish an octogenarian incumbent over calls for generational change.
Neal and Lynch also turned back challengers from the left, reinforcing that the state's Democratic electorate favored incumbency over demands for new leadership.
The results underscored the durability of politicians who have held office for decades—Markey for 50 years, Neal since 1989 and Lynch since 2001—despite a party still sensitive to age after Joe Biden's 2024 campaign collapse.