Live coverage: 2020 Massachusetts primaries

Primaries conclude tonight in Massachusetts, and we’re liveblogging the results below.

Resources: Key races guide | Cheat-sheet

Results: MA

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 1:44:14 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

Here is where we stand, a little over 90 minutes into primary night in Massachusetts:

• MA-Sen (D): On the strength of simply massive margins in the affluent communities around Boston, incumbent Sen. Ed Markey currently holds a 55-45 lead over Rep. Joseph Kennedy III. While Kennedy has chipped away at the lead a little, Markey still has a sizable 32,000 vote edge.
• MA-01 (D): So far, what was expected to be a tight House primary in Western Massachusetts has been a fairly pedestrian affair, with incumbent Rep. Richard Neal up 60-40 over Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse. However, it’s worth noting that relatively little of Morse’s hometown has reported thus far.
• MA-04 (D): Good news thus far in this primary to replace JKIII in the House. Progressive Jesse Mermell has now moved out to a 32-21 lead over Jake Auchincloss, a former Republican who ran in the moderate lane in this multi-candidate primary.
• MA-06/MA-08 (D): This might be the last time we mention these two races, as incumbent Democrats Seth Moulton and Stephen Lynch are winning their respective primaries with north of 70 percent of the vote.

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 1:45:59 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

MA-01 (D): If you had told me at the beginning of the night that this was going to be the FIRST race of the evening to be called by the AP, I would not have believed you. That said, the AP has made their call for incumbent Rep. Richard Neal, who has defeated Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse by a wider margin that was initially anticpated.

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 2:00:13 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

MA-06 (D): Not a humongous shock here, but the AP has called the Democratic primary here for incumbent Rep. Seth Moulton, who currently leads with 78 percent of the vote.

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 2:14:35 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

MA-08 (D): The AP has called this Democratic primary for incumbent Rep. Stephen Lynch, who currently enjoys a 70-30 lead over Robbie Goldstein.

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 2:19:03 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

BREAKING: Joe Kennedy has called Ed Markey to concede the senate race, Kennedy campaign says. Kennedy will address reporters at 10:30 p.m.

— Stephanie Murray (@stephanie_murr) September 2, 2020

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 2:31:21 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

MA-Sen (D): And then there was one (race we are still watching). We now have a call for Sen. Ed Markey, who maintains roughly a ten-point lead over Rep. Joseph Kennedy III, a lead he has held since the relatively early going.

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 2:48:59 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

MA-04 (D): The lead for progressive former Brookline select board member Jesse Mermell has been steadily eroding over the past hour. What was once a lead of 4800 votes (8.5%) is now down to just 3200 votes (3.9%). 

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 2:58:06 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

MA-04 (D): We’re now over halfway home in this primary, and the lead for progressive Jesse Mermell continues to dip as it heads to turf outside of the candidates’ home bases where Jake Auchincloss’ cash edge is paying off. The Mermell lead is now down to just 2380 votes (2.7%).

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 3:17:21 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

MA-04 (D): Here is an object lesson in campaign spending. Taunton is a good-sized city on the southern end of the district. This is notable because the three leading candidates in the race all hailed from towns on the northern end of the district (Brookline and Newton). Jake Auchincloss has been the biggest spender in the race, and it seemed to pay dividends here: he won Taunton by roughly a thousand votes, and that pulls him within 1400 votes (1.2%) of Jesse Mermell.

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 3:29:00 AM +00:00 · Steve Singiser

MA-04 (D): This one is feeling like it will flip eventually, but there is a nonzero chance that Newton City Councillor (and former Republican) Jake Auchincloss might run out of real estate. With 68% of precincts reporting, the lead for progressive Jesse Mermell is down to 1163 votes (1.0%). After building a solid lead in her backyard of Brookline, the margin has narrowed steadily the rest of the evening.

Wednesday, Sep 2, 2020 · 3:31:59 AM +00:00 · Jeff Singer

The liveblog continues here.