United States Senate elections in Massachusetts, 2014
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Ed Markey Incumbent |
59% | 1,289,944 | |
| Republican | Brian Herr | 36.2% | 791,950 | |
| Write-in | Other | 0.1% | 3,078 | |
| Blank | None | 4.7% | 101,819 | |
| Total Votes | 2,186,791 | |||
| Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
 |
November 4, 2014 |
September 9, 2014 |
Ed Markey  |
Ed Markey |
 |
Cook Political Report: Safe D[1] Sabato's Crystal Ball: Solid D[2] |
 |
Voters in Massachusetts elected Ed Markey (D) to the U.S. Senate in the election on November 4, 2014.
Incumbent Ed Markey, who was first elected in a special election on June 25, 2013, won the general election against Brian Herr (R). The 2013 special election was held to replace John Kerry, who was appointed to the position of United States Secretary of State.
Markey faced favorable odds of re-election with the state being strongly supportive of Democratic issues. Cook Political Report rated the Massachusetts Senate race as "Safe D." October polls confirmed Markey's advantage with a strong lead over his opponent.
The Senate race in Massachusetts had analysts noting the low media coverage of the event. What was even more noteworthy was Markey's low-key campaign, especially when compared to the expensive effort to win his seat in 2013. He reported significantly less money spent on his re-election campaign than his bid to claim the seat. Given Markey's strong lead in the polls, analysts believed his strategy was to minimize mistakes.[3]
On the issues, Markey and Herr seemed split along party lines when it came to policy. Both candidates debated in October of 2014 where they strongly disagreed on how to address issues, such as Obamacare. The split on policy likely favored Markey in the general election as Massachusetts is supportive Democratic issues. Democrats also had triple the number of registered voters as Republicans did in the state.[4] Moreover, Herr's platform was critical of the Obama administration. While this worked for Republicans in other states, Massachusetts maintained a favorable opinion of President Obama.[5]
Markey faced no opposition in the primary election. Herr also faced no opposition in his primary. Two other Republican candidates ran but did so off the ballot as write-in candidates.
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Massachusetts utilizes a semi-closed primary system. An unaffiliated voter is allowed to vote in the primary election of his or her choice.[6][7]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Voter registration: To vote in the primary, voters had to register by August 20, 2014. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 15, 2014.[8]
- See also: Massachusetts elections, 2014
Incumbent: The election was held to fill the Class 2 Senate seat held by Ed Markey (D). Markey was first elected in a special election on June 25, 2013. The special election was held to replace John Kerry, who was appointed to the position of Secretary of State.
Candidates
General election candidates
September 9, 2014, primary results
Democratic Primary
- Ed Markey - Incumbent
Republican Primary
Not on ballot
General election results
The state of Massachusetts held an election for the U.S. Senate on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Ed Markey (D) defeated challenger Brian Herr (R) in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Ed Markey Incumbent |
59% | 1,289,944 | |
| Republican | Brian Herr | 36.2% | 791,950 | |
| Write-in | Other | 0.1% | 3,078 | |
| Blank | None | 4.7% | 101,819 | |
| Total Votes | 2,186,791 | |||
| Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
Race background
Reports circulated in September 2013 that Gomez was mulling a rematch against Ed Markey (D) in 2014.[13] Gomez lost to Markey by 10 points in the special election for the vacant Senate seat in 2013.[13] Gomez ultimately did not seek a rematch.
Key votes
Below are important votes the incumbent cast during the 113th Congress.
Government shutdown
- See also: United States budget debate, 2013
During the shutdown in October 2013, the Senate rejected, down party lines, every House-originated bill that stripped the budget of funding for the Affordable Care Act. A deal was reached late on October 16, 2013, just hours before the debt ceiling deadline. The bill to reopen the government, H.R. 2775, lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies.[14] The final vote on H.R. 2775 was 81-18, with all 18 votes against the bill from Republican members. Markey voted with the Democratic Party for the bill.[15]
Issues
Herr files ethics complaint
Brian Herr (R) issued a statement on March 17, 2014, saying he filed a complaint against incumbent Ed Markey with the Senate ethics committee.[16][17] Herr accused Markey of using his position to manipulate stock.[16] Markey wrote letters to federal regulators urging an investigation into the nutritional supplement firm Herbalife.[16]
"All you have to do is connect the dots to easily see that Sen. Markey used his public office to manipulate the stock of a publicly traded company in order to financially benefit a campaign donor," Herr said.[16]
The Sun Chronicle reported that Markey responded by saying he "only wrote the letters because Herbalife's practices were hurting consumers."[18]
Campaign Finances
| Ed Markey (2014) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| October Quarterly[19] | October 15, 2013 | $944,599 | $265,563 | $(453,487) | $756,675 | ||||
| Year End[20] | January 31, 2014 | $756,675 | $854,809 | $(200,164) | $1,411,320 | ||||
| April Quarterly[21] | April 15, 2014 | $1,411,320 | $588,254 | $(325,929) | $1,673,646 | ||||
| July Quarterly[22] | July 15, 2014 | $1,673,646 | $1,034,875 | $(604,142) | $2,104,379 | ||||
| October Quarterly[23] | October 15, 2014 | $2,390,725 | $547,658 | $(330,101) | $2,608,283 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $3,291,159 | $(1,913,823) | ||||||||
| Brian Herr (2014) Campaign Finance Reports | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Report | Date Filed | Beginning Balance | Total Contributions for Reporting Period | Expenditures | Cash on Hand | ||||
| April Quarterly[24] | April 15, 2014 | $0 | $29,624 | $(18,913) | $10,711 | ||||
| July Quarterly[25] | July 15, 2014 | $10,711 | $21,282 | $(23,211) | $8,782 | ||||
| Running totals | |||||||||
| $50,906 | $(42,124) | ||||||||
Election history
2014
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Ed Markey Incumbent |
59% | 1,289,944 | |
| Republican | Brian Herr | 36.2% | 791,950 | |
| Write-in | Other | 0.1% | 3,078 | |
| Blank | None | 4.7% | 101,819 | |
| Total Votes | 2,186,791 | |||
| Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
2013
On June 25, 2013, Ed Markey won election to the United States Senate seat vacated by John Kerry, after his confirmation by the U.S. Senate to the position of Secretary of State.[26][27] He defeated Gabriel Gomez and Richard Heos in the general election.
2012
On November 6, 2012, Elizabeth Warren won election to the United States Senate. She defeated incumbent Scott Brown and Bill Cimbrelo in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Elizabeth Warren |
53.3% | 1,696,346 | |
| Republican | Scott Brown Incumbent | 45.8% | 1,458,048 | |
| N/A | All Others | 0.1% | 2,159 | |
| N/A | Blank Votes | 0.9% | 27,643 | |
| Total Votes | 3,184,196 | |||
| Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State "Return of Votes" | ||||
2008
On November 4, 2008, John Kerry won re-election to the United States Senate. He defeated Jeffrey K. Beatty (R) and Robert J. Underwood (L) in the general election.[28]
| U.S. Senate, Massachusetts General Election, 2008 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | John Kerry incumbent |
63.6% | 1,971,974 | |
| Republican | Jeffrey K. Beatty | 29.8% | 926,044 | |
| Libertarian | Robert J. Underwood | 3% | 93,716 | |
| N/A | All Others | 0.1% | 2,516 | |
| N/A | Blank/Scattering | 3.5% | 108,748 | |
| Total Votes | 3,102,998 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Massachusetts, 2014
- United States Senate elections, 2014
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2014 SENATE RACE RATINGS FOR JULY 18, 2014," accessed August 5, 2014
- ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 Senate Races," accessed August 5, 2014
- ↑ WBUR, "Commentary: The U.S. Senate Race That Isn’t A Race," September 26, 2014
- ↑ Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Massachusetts Registered Voter Enrollment: 1948–2012," accessed October 22, 2014
- ↑ Huffington Post, "Massachusetts: Obama Job Approval," accessed October 22, 2014
- ↑ NCSL, "State Primary Election Types," accessed October 3, 2024
- ↑ Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "How to Vote in a Primary," accessed October 3, 2024
- ↑ Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Website, "Voter Registration Information," accessed January 3, 2014
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedbruce - ↑ Masslive.com, "Republican Frank Addivinola launches campaign for U.S. Senate seat held by Ed Markey," accessed February 19, 2014
- ↑ Milford Daily News, "Addivinola anounces run for U.S. Senate seat," accessed February 19, 2014
- ↑ Mark Inman for Senate Facebook page, "Info," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Politico, "Gabriel Gomez mulls rematch vs. Ed Markey," accessed September 19, 2013
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Reid, McConnell propose bipartisan Senate bill to end shutdown, extend borrowing," accessed October 16, 2013
- ↑ Senate.gov, "H.R. 2775 As Amended," accessed October 31, 2013
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 NewsMax, "Democratic Sen. Ed Markey Accused of Using Office to Manipulate Stock," accessed March 19, 2014
- ↑ Brian Herr for Congress, "Republican lodges ethics complaint against rival over Herbalife," accessed March 19, 2014
- ↑ "Sun Chronicle","Brian Herr, Markey's GOP foe, reaches out to area officials", accessed August 13, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "October Quarterly," accessed February 19, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Year End Report," accessed February 19, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed April 19, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "July Quarterly," accessed October 16, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "October Quarterly," accessed October 20, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed October 16, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "July Quarterly," accessed October 16, 2014
- ↑ Boston Globe ,"" December 27, 2012
- ↑ Yahoo news, "Mo Cowan appointed interim U.S. senator for Massachusetts"
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 4, 2008," accessed March 28, 2013
