MA-SEN: Kennedy holds 6-point lead over Markey in Massachusetts Senate primary

[RandySF]

Massachusetts Rep. Joe Kennedy (D) holds a six-point lead over longtime incumbent Sen. Ed Markey (D) in the Bay State's Democratic Senate primary, according to a Suffolk University/WBZ/Boston Globe survey released on Sunday.

Forty-two percent of voters said they supported Kennedy, while 36 percent backed Markey in the poll, which has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.

Around 28 percent of voters said they were "undecided" on if they believed Markey should be reelected, while 19 percent said they were "undecided" on the senator's job performance.

A University of Massachusetts-Lowell survey released earlier this month also showed a tighter race, with Kennedy polling at 35 percent support, while Markey came in with 34 percent support. That poll's margin of error was plus or minus 6.1 percentage points.

Kennedy, the grandson of former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, is running for the seat which was once held by his great-uncles former President John F. Kennedy and former Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.).

The 39-year-old progressive lawmaker is promising to bring generational change and a fresh perspective to the Senate as Washington remains divided on partisan lines. Kennedy has touted his positions on a number of issues, including immigration and health care, in the primary.



https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/485397-kennedy-holds-6-point-lead-over-markey-in-massachusetts-senate-primary-poll

[MagickMuffin]

1. I'm not happy about this Sen. Markey is a great senator so . . . .

Why not wait your turn Joe you're young, what's the rush that you cannot wait until Ed is ready to retire?

[UTUSN]

2. Shaking my head over entitled KENNEDY elbowing out honorable Dem MARKEY.

[Celerity]

4. we (London raised here) call it giving him the Spanish archer

el bow

[UTUSN]

5. Thanks, please spell it out for benighted me!1

[Celerity]

6. I did

its cockney slang

Spanish archer >>> el bow

elbow

As in

Oi! mate, why you giving me the archer???

(the Spanish part often gets dropped as it is implied.)

similar to

I fell down the apples.

apples and pears >>> stairs

[UTUSN]

9. Oh, didn't get "el bow" as "elbow". Seems like stretching to "Spanish archer" is lots of cogitation

being invested into a moment of slang.

Now. "apples and pears"/stairs/falling down the apples. Uh (my) words fail.

[OnDoutside]

12. The Royal Order of the Spanish Archer !

[bearsfootball516]

7. Is it really elbowing him out if he beats him fair and square?

[UTUSN]

8. The elbowing is challenging a perfectly fine Democratic office holder (unnecessarily?)

in the first place. What has been KENNEDY's rationale for it? Which brings up the Roger MUDD question to Ted KENNEDY: "Senator, why do you want to be President?" I assume this KENNEDY has had decades of preparation for this kind of question.

The beating fair and square is the later outcome.

[Lexblues]

17. Kennedy is preparing for a WH run someday

and the Senate is better to run from than the House. So why wait 6 years? Also, no guarantee Markey would retire in 6 years anyway. Look at Feinstein.

[wryter2000]

14. I'm with you

This sucks

[aikoaiko]

3. It makes me sad that Markey will be the collateral damage for Joe Kennedy.

If it is the will of the Mass people to be represented by Joe Kennedy, then so be it.

[MissMillie]

10. If the Democrats take the Senate

and Markey loses his seat, it will be a loss in the sense that important committee assignments go to those with tenure. On the other hand, I see the need to bring younger folks on board, and given that the seat is not in jeopardy this may be the time to do it.

If the Democrats take the White House, I could see Markey in a cabinet post (maybe Energy), in which case a Special Election would need to be held. I don't see that seat going "red" any time soon.

I like Markey very much. I like Kennedy very much. Having two really good candidates from which to choose is not a terrible position to be in.

The reason I didn't participate in early voting was because of this race. I may actually have to flip a coin.

[NewJeffCT]

11. Markey is one of the most liberal senators

according to progressive punch, Markey is THE most liberal senator in the entire senate, ahead of Harris, Booker, Sanders, etc.

https://progressivepunch.org/scores.htm?house=senate

Kennedy is slightly to the left of middle of the pack when it comes to the House Democratic caucus

[Calista241]

13. It was John Kerry's seat before Markey.

I personally don't have a problem with a young progressive getting a Senate seat over an older one. It's better for us long term IMO.

The population is going to get younger as Boomers start dying off, and we NEED young people to vote like in no other election since the Republic was founded.

[NewJeffCT]

15. Kennedy's voting record isn't that progressive

meanwhile, Markey is the most liberal member of the entire senate, according to voting record

Kennedy is a bit to the left of the middle of the Democratic caucus

[rusty fender]

16. The senate seat doesn't belong to Markey

He is in it till the voters no longer want him. Remember when newcomer, AOC, ousted another Democratic office holder? Many on this board celebrated that.

[DFW]

18. Very valid point

And easily overlooked. Markey's record is nothing to be ashamed of, of course. If I were a resident of Massachusetts, I would be looking at this race as one I couldn't lose. Besides, I think the observation that Markey could be offered a cabinet position by an incoming Democratic president is a valid one.

Markey does have one black spot on his record to me, but I don't vote in Massachusetts, so I don't have to make the choice.

[UTUSN]

19. It don't belong to any particular KENNEDY neither.