Voting in Massachusetts’ special election to determine who will represent the Democratic and Republican parties in the race to succeed Senator John Kerry has ended, and the results are beginning to trickle in.
As of just before 5:45 PM Pacific, with around one-fourth of precincts reporting, U.S. Representative Ed Markey and former Navy SEAL Gabriel Gomez led their respective challengers for the Democratic and Republican nominations. Each had been considered his party’s frontrunner, so these results aren’t too surprising.
Here are the numbers:
MA-Senate — Democratic Special Primary
April 30, 2013 — Results as of 05:41PM Pacific
56 of 2172 Precincts Reporting — 26%
Ed Markey: 58% (74,623 votes)
Stephen Lynch: 42% (53,766 votes)
MA-Senate — Republican Special Primary
April 30th, 2013 — Results as of 05:42PM Pacific
538 of 2172 Precincts Reporting — 25%
Gabriel Gomez: 52% (26,782 votes)
Mike Sullivan: 35% (18,056 votes)
Dan Winslow: 13% (6,652 votes)
Results are coming in at a steady pace, so it’s likely these numbers will be outdated by the time many NPI Advocate readers see this post.
However, it’s always nice to have a snapshot.
Ed Markey’s lead stood at 61% earlier when fewer votes had been tallied and reported. It has since shrunk, but not by that much. Gomez has been in the low fifties for a while. His closest challenger is Mike Sullivan, but he’s pulling in enough votes that third-place finisher Dan Winslow can’t be called a spoiler.
Democrats Ed Markey and Stephen Lynch, as many readers may know, are both members of Massachusetts’ U.S. House delegation. Markey is considered to be more progressive and has a stronger voting record, according to ProgressivePunch.
The Boston Globe reported that turnout for this election was fairly low, with polling places not seeing much activity. Election fatigue may be party to blame — last year’s elections dominated airwaves and mailboxes for a pretty long time.
UPDATE, 6:20 PM: The Associated Press and major news outlets are projecting that Markey and Gomez are the winners of their respective primaries. With more than 70% of ballots now counted, it’s evident that their opponents aren’t going to close the gap. It will be Markey vs. Gomez from now until June 25th.
One Comment
Gomez should not be underestimated. Markey needs to work hard so he can avoid the fate of Martha Coakley.