By Ken Thomas

WASHINGTON-Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey, who has spent nearly a half-century in Congress, beat back a Democratic primary challenge Tuesday from Rep. Seth Moulton in a generational fight that focused on Markey's age and the future of the party.

Markey, an 80-year-old liberal who has focused on climate change, defeated Moulton, a 47-year-old congressman who has frequently tangled with establishment figures within the party.

But while several aging Democratic lawmakers lost their primaries to younger challengers this year, Markey managed to prevail, saying he was energized by serving as a bulwark against President Trump in one of the nation's most reliably Democratic states.

With 2% of the expected vote counted, Markey had 73% and Moulton had 27%, according to the Associated Press.

Markey, who served decades in the House before moving to the Senate, succeeded where some Democrats had failed against younger challengers. Rep. John Larson (D., Conn.), a 78-year-old lawmaker, was defeated last month by former Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin, 47, in the party primary. In other House races, younger candidates with ties to the Democratic Socialists of America ousted a group of older incumbents in New York, Colorado and Michigan.

Moulton tried to seize upon Markey's age as a call for change. When Markey stumbled over a debate question last month about what kind of AI tools he used on his personal devices- "I use whatever is inside my iPhone and my iPad, whatever comes up," Markey said- Moulton tried to create an opening in the race.

"With all due respect, senator, if you don't even know what you're using on your phone or your iPad, like this is why we need a new generation of leaders to regulate these technologies," Moulton said.

But Markey was helped by his support among liberal voters along with endorsements by progressive stars such as Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., N.Y.), major labor unions and youth groups such as the College Democrats.

Markey also criticized Moulton for questioning whether transgender athletes should be allowed to compete in women's and girls' sports. Moulton said in a 2024 interview that he didn't want his young daughters to get "run over" by "a male or formerly male" athlete, in talking about rules for school sports. Markey said Moulton "threw those kids under the political bus" after the 2024 election-Moulton said he was sorry to anyone hurt by his comments.

Markey, who will be 86 at the end of his term if he wins re-election, won his primary two years after former President Joe Biden's early exit from the 2024 presidential election following a disastrous debate performance. And it came six years after Markey overcame a primary challenge from then-Rep. Joe Kennedy III, a member of the powerful Massachusetts political family who was 39 at the time.

Moulton, a Marine veteran who served in Iraq and was first elected to Congress in 2014, often served as a more moderate figure in the House and as a thorn in the side of leadership. Moulton led an effort after the 2018 midterm elections to prevent Rep. Nancy Pelosi from becoming House speaker again, but it failed to gain traction. In 2019, he briefly ran for president as a next-generation candidate but dropped out after four months.

Markey will be heavily favored against Republican John Deaton, an attorney and veteran who was defeated by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) in the 2024 Senate election.

Write to Ken Thomas at ken.thomas@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 01, 2026 20:43 ET (00:43 GMT)