Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey (D) is leading Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) in the race to keep his Senate seat, according to a new poll.
The Emerson College Polling survey, released Thursday, found 37 percent of U.S. respondents backed the incumbent in a hypothetical Democratic primary match-up, while 32.3 percent backed Moulton. Other candidates received less than 1 percent support, and another 28.9 percent were undecided months before the September primary.
Moulton, a moderate 47-year-old veteran, launched a challenge against Markey last October citing the need for generational change. In his announcement video, he argued that the Democratic Party has “clung to the status quo, insisted on using the same old playbook, and isn’t fighting hard enough.”
“We’re in a crisis, and with everything we learned last election,” he said at the time, “I just don’t believe Sen. Markey should be running for another six-year term at 80 years old.”
“Even more, I don’t think someone who’s been in Congress for half a century is the right person to meet this moment and win the future,” the lawmaker added.
After former President Biden withdrew from the 2024 race following a disastrous debate against then-GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, questions around the age and mental fitness of elected officials have swirled.
Still, the latest survey shows Markey clinging to support among young voters. Roughly 33 precent of voters under 50 picked the incumbent as their likely choice compared with 26 percent who said they would pick Moulton.
Adults older than 50 were more split, with 40 percent backing Markey and 38 percent supporting the House Democrat, the results show.
The Massachusetts senator has a 37 percent favorability rating among voters in the Bay State, the pollsters noted. Broken down by party, 60 percent of Democrats gave him a favorable rating while 12 percent did not.
Moulton, on the other hand, holds a 31 percent favorability rating, including 49 percent of Democratic primary voters, according to the survey.
The Emerson College poll was conducted May 3-4 featuring 451 likely Democratic primary voters. The margin of error is plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.
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