Sen-elect Ed Markey
Congratulations, Senator-elect Ed Markey. Massachusetts voters have chosen to send a strong progressive to the U.S. Senate to join Elizabeth Warren. He sounded a lot like his senior senator today, when talking about
this race.
Markey grew up in Malden. His father was a milkman; his mother left school to care for her younger sisters. Markey said as a child, it would have been “incomprehensible, just so far beyond what you could ever have imagined” for him to mount a run for U.S. Senate.
“I know how fortunate I am to even have my name on the ballot today,” Markey said. “I’ve been the beneficiary of a tremendous amount of investment in health care and education and breaking down discriminatory barriers that make it possible for me to stand here today as a candidate for the United States Senate, and I know it, especially today.”
It's ironic that this election was held on the day the Supreme Court essentially repealed landmark legislation to outlaw discrimination in voting. That decision makes Markey's victory that much more important as the Senate works to restore the protections of the Voting Rights Act. On a day when President Obama delivered a groundbreaking speech on climate change, a strong leader and expert on clean energy and the environment issues has been sent to the Senate to will help strengthen the caucus of climate warriors.
Thank you for all you've done to help get Ed Markey to the Senate. Take a few minutes to savor this election, even while we lament what the Supreme Court has done. Electing people like Ed Markey is the key to fighting back.