Overview
- Final polls released in the closing days show Sen. Ed Markey ahead by roughly 27 to 30 points, with Emerson College reporting a 60% to 33% margin in its Aug. 28–29 survey.
- More than 390,000 Democratic ballots were cast before Election Day, shrinking the pool of voters Rep. Seth Moulton can reach and raising the bar for any late comeback.
- Markey has leaned on high‑profile progressive endorsements and a record on issues like the Green New Deal to consolidate the party’s liberal base.
- Moulton has run on generational change and attacked Markey’s age and debate miscues, but his past critical comments about transgender athletes have become a sustained liability in a heavily progressive electorate.
- The primary’s outcome will be known after polls close on Sept. 1 and could shape turnout and dynamics in key down‑ballot House and state races that are also being watched across Massachusetts.