Here’s the latest news today out of Massachusetts:
Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) leads primary challenger Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-Mass.) by double digits, according to a UMass/Amherst poll released Wednesday.
Markey leads Kennedy among Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters 51 percent to 36 percent in the poll, with 12 percent undecided. When Democratic-leaning voters are removed from the sample, Markey expands his lead to 50 percent to 32 percent, but the percentage of undecideds also increases to 17 percent.
The poll’s results were considerably narrower in February, when Markey led Kennedy only 43 percent to 40 percent. Markey still led slightly but the margin separating the two was the same without leaners, 39 percent to 36 percent.
Here’s some more info:
The poll asked which candidate was trusted more to handle big issues.
Markey was the choice for economy (48%), health care (47%), taxes (41%), education (43%), climate change (43%), President Trump (39%), transportation (41%), and the COVID-19 crisis (45%).
Respondents chose Kennedy for one issue, race relations (39%).
Click here for the full results.
Here’s why Markey is pulling ahead big time:
"What Markey hadn't done in the past was flex his muscles, flex his policy muscles." said Suffolk University pollster David Paleologos. "Now he's doing that and I think Kennedy is realizing policy runs deep in Massachusetts. Personality and persona are important too, but in Massachusetts policy runs very deep.”
Markey’s once-lackluster approval rating and name ID helped explain why two lesser-known Democrats — Shannon Liss-Riordan and Steve Pemberton — launched primary challenges to the low-key incumbent. But they dropped out when Kennedy, the heir to the state’s best-known political dynasty, entered the contest in September. Right away, Kennedy bolted to an early lead: A Boston Globe/Suffolk University poll showed him with a 14-point lead over Markey even before he officially announced his campaign.
But authoring the Green New Deal earned Markey the very public support of New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — the Democratic Party's leading millennial. Ocasio-Cortez cut a television ad for Markey at the end of July, and the campaign has spent more than $240,000 putting it on the air.
Let’s keep up the momentum and help Markey win his primary on September 1st. Click here to donate and get involved with Markey’s re-election campaign.