The 2013 United States Senate special election in Massachusetts was held on June 25, 2013, in order to fill the

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

Class 2 United States Senate seat for the remainder of the term ending January 3, 2015. The vacancy that prompted the special election was created by the resignation of Senator

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...

, in order to become

U.S. Secretary of State The United States secretary of state (SecState) is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The secretary of state serves as the principal advisor to the p ...

. On January 30, 2013,

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Deval Patrick Deval Laurdine Patrick (born July 31, 1956) is an American politician who served as the 71st governor of Massachusetts from 2007 to 2015. He was the first African Americans, African-American Governor of Massachusetts and the first Democratic Pa ...

chose his former chief of staff,

Mo Cowan William Maurice Cowan (born April 4, 1969) is an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Massachusetts from February 1, 2013, to July 15, 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as legal counsel and c ...

, to serve as interim U.S. Senator. Cowan declined to participate in the election. A party primary election was held on April 30, to determinate the nominees of each party for the general election. The

Massachusetts Democrats Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode Island to i ...

nominated U.S. Representative

Ed Markey Edward John Markey (born July 11, 1946) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from the state of Massachusetts, a seat he has held since 2013. A member of ...

, while the

Massachusetts Republicans Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode Island to it ...

nominated Gabriel E. Gomez, a businessman and former

Navy SEAL The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the United States Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the United States Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main funct ...

. The race drew remarks from the media, because of its potential similarity to the 2010 special election, when Republican state senator

Scott Brown Scott Brown may refer to: Sportsmen *Scott Brown (American football), American college football coach of Kentucky State *Scott Brown (baseball) (born 1956), former Major League Baseball pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds *Scott Brown (footballer, born ...

upset the Democratic nominee,

Massachusetts Attorney General The Massachusetts attorney general is an elected constitutionally defined executive officer of the Massachusetts government. The officeholder is the chief lawyer and law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The officeholder ...

Martha Coakley Martha Mary Coakley (born July 14, 1953) is an American lobbyist, lawyer, and former politician who served as Attorney General of Massachusetts from 2007 to 2015. She is most notable for having lost a race for the United States Senate in what was ...

. However, Gomez trailed Markey in every opinion poll taken, and Markey defeated him by 120,122 votes, despite low turnout.

Background

The incumbent senator,

( Democratic), was nominated to serve as

by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

on December 21, 2012. He was confirmed by the Senate on January 29, 2013, and in a letter to Massachusetts Governor

, Kerry announced his resignation from the Senate, effective February 1. Kerry was sworn in as secretary of state on the same day. Patrick's former chief of staff,

, was appointed to replace Kerry in the Senate on the same day, and immediately ruled himself out of the special election. The special primary elections took place on April 30. Democratic U.S. Representative

and Republican businessman Gabriel E. Gomez won their respective primaries.

Democratic primary

U.S. Representatives Ed Markey and

Stephen F. Lynch Stephen Francis Lynch (born March 31, 1955) is an American businessman, attorney and politician who has served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts since 2001. A Democrat, he represents Massachusetts's 8th congr ...

both announced campaigns for the open seat. Markey was perceived as more

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social ...

than Lynch.

Candidates

, U.S. representative from

South Boston South Boston (colloquially known as Southie) is a densely populated neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, located south and east of the Fort Point Channel and abutting Dorchester Bay (Boston Harbor), Dorchester Bay. It has under ...

, U.S. representative from Malden

Declined

Ben Affleck Benjamin Géza Affleck (born August 15, 1972) is an American actor and filmmaker. His accolades include two Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and three Golden Globes. Affleck began his career as a child when he starred in the PBS educatio ...

, actor *

Michael Capuano Michael Everett Capuano ( ; born January 9, 1952) is an American politician and attorney who served as a U.S. Representative of Massachusetts from 1999 to 2019. A Democrat, his district included the northern three-fourths of Boston, as well as ...

, U.S. representative, 2010 Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate *

Attorney General of Massachusetts The Massachusetts attorney general is an elected Constitution of Massachusetts, constitutionally defined executive officer of the Massachusetts government. The officeholder is the chief lawyer and law enforcement officer of the Massachusetts, Com ...

and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2010 *

, appointed incumbent U.S. senator *

Benjamin Downing Benjamin Brackett Downing (born September 11, 1981) is an American politician and Democratic former member of the Massachusetts State Senate. He represented the Berkshire, Hampshire and Franklin district from 2007 to 2013, before being redistr ...

, state senator * Kimberley Driscoll, mayor of Salem *

Barney Frank Barnett Frank (born March 31, 1940) is a retired American politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013. A Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, Frank served as chairman of th ...

, former U.S. representative *

Edward M. Kennedy Jr. Edward Moore Kennedy Jr. (born September 26, 1961) is an American lawyer and politician. He is a partner at Epstein Becker & Green, a firm headquartered in New York City, and previously represented Connecticut's 12th State Senate district in th ...

, entrepreneur, investment banker, lawyer, and son of senator

Ted Kennedy Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician from Massachusetts who served as a member of the United States Senate from 1962 to his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic Party and ...

Victoria Reggie Kennedy Victoria Anne Kennedy (née Reggie; born February 26, 1954) is an American diplomat, attorney, and activist who served as the United States Ambassador to Austria from 2022 to 2025. She is the widow and the second wife of longtime U.S. senator T ...

, widow of senator Ted Kennedy *

Gerard Leone Gerard T. “Gerry” Leone Jr. served as the District Attorney of Middlesex County, Massachusetts from 2007 to 2013. He was formerly a partner at the law firm, Nixon Peabody. He was then the General Counsel for the Office of the President at UM ...

, Middlesex County District Attorney * Jim McGovern, U.S. representative *

Marty Meehan Martin Thomas Meehan (born December 30, 1956) is an American academic administrator, politician, and attorney. Since July 2015, Meehan has served as the President of the University of Massachusetts after serving as Chancellor of the Universi ...

, chancellor of the University of Massachusetts, Lowell and former U.S. Representative * Carmen Ortiz, U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts *

governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The governor is the chief executive, head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonw ...

* Jonah Pesner,

rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

Niki Tsongas Nicola Dickson "Niki" Tsongas (; née Sauvage; born April 26, 1946) is an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts from 2007 to 2019. She held the seat formerly held by her husband, the late Paul Tsongas, for ...

, U.S. representative and widow of senator

Paul Tsongas Paul Efthemios Tsongas ( ; February 14, 1941 – January 18, 1997) was an American politician who represented Massachusetts in the United States Senate from 1979 until 1985 and in the United States House of Representatives from 1975 until 1 ...

Debates

Complete video of debate
March 27, 2013 -

C-SPAN Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American Cable television in the United States, cable and Satellite television in the United States, satellite television network, created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a Non ...

Complete video of debate
April 22, 2013 -

Endorsements

Polling

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

* Gabriel E. Gomez, businessman and former

* Michael J. Sullivan, former

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for the District of Massachusetts and former acting director of the

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE), commonly referred to as ATF, is a domestic law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice. Its responsibilities include the investigation and prevention ...

Daniel Winslow Daniel B. Winslow (born May 13, 1958) is an American lawyer, Republican Party politician, and former Presiding Justice of the Wrentham District Court. He was the state Representative for the Ninth Norfolk district from January 2011 to Septem ...

State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United St ...

Withdrawn

* Sean Bielat, nominee for Massachusetts's 4th congressional district in

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

and

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

* Jon Fetherston, former Ashland Selectman

Declined

Keith Ablow Keith Russell Ablow (born November 23, 1961) is an American author, life coach, former television personality, and former psychiatrist. He is a former contributor for Fox News Channel and TheBlaze. Formerly an assistant clinical professor at Tuf ...

, psychiatrist and

Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...

contributor *

Charlie Baker Charles Duane Baker Jr. (born November 13, 1956) is an American politician serving as the sixth president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 72nd governor of Massa ...

, former state cabinet secretary and nominee for

Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The governor is the chief executive, head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonw ...

, former U.S. Senator * Lew Evangelidis, sheriff of Worcester County *

Kerry Healey Kerry Murphy Healey (born April 30, 1960) is an American politician and educator serving as President Emerita of Babson College. She previously served as the 70th lieutenant governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 under Governor Mitt Romne ...

, former

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

and nominee for governor in 2006 *

Joe Malone Maurice Joseph Malone (February 28, 1890 – May 15, 1969) was a Canadian professional ice hockey centre. He played in the National Hockey Association (NHA) and National Hockey League (NHL) for the Quebec Bulldogs, Montreal Canadiens, and Hamilt ...

, former

Treasurer and Receiver-General of Massachusetts The treasurer and receiver-general of Massachusetts is an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Originally appointed under authority of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, English Crown pursuan ...

Ann Romney Ann Lois Romney ( Davies; born April 16, 1949) is an American author and philanthropist. She is married to politician and businessman Mitt Romney. From 2003 to 2007, Romney was First Lady of Massachusetts during her husband's tenure as governor ...

, former First Lady of Massachusetts * Tagg Romney, businessman and son of former Governor Mitt Romney *

Jane Swift Jane Maria Swift (born February 24, 1965) is an American politician and nonprofit executive who served as the 69th lieutenant governor of Massachusetts from 1999 to 2003 and, concurrently, as acting governor from April 2001 to January 2003. She w ...

, former

and

acting governor An acting governor is a person who acts in the role of governor. In Commonwealth jurisdictions where the governor is a vice-regal position, the role of "acting governor" may be filled by a lieutenant governor (as in most Australian states) or a ...

* Bruce Tarr,

State Senate In the United States, the state legislature is the legislative branch in each of the 50 U.S. states. A legislature generally performs state duties for a state in the same way that the United States Congress performs national duties at ...

Minority Leader * Richard Tisei, former

Minority Leader, nominee for

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

, and nominee for Massachusetts’ 6th congressional district in

William Weld William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is ...

, former

and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 1996

Debates

Complete video of debate
March 27, 2013 -

Endorsements

Polling

Results

General election

Candidates

* Gabriel E. Gomez ( Republican), businessman and former Navy SEAL * Richard A. Heos (Twelve Visions Party) *

( Democratic), U.S. Representative from

Massachusetts's 5th congressional district Massachusetts's 5th congressional district is a congressional district in eastern Massachusetts. The district is represented by Katherine Clark of the Democratic Party. Massachusetts's congressional redistricting after the 2010 census changed ...

Withdrawn

* Daniel Fishman (

Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

), former teacher and nominee for

Massachusetts's 6th congressional district Massachusetts's 6th congressional district is located in northeastern Massachusetts. It contains almost all of Essex County, Massachusetts, Essex County, including the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore and Cape Ann and excluding the Merrim ...

* Jack E. Robinson III (

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

), businessman and perennial Republican candidate

Debates

Complete video of debate
June 5, 2013 -

Complete video of debate
June 18, 2013 -

Fundraising

Top contributors

Top industries

Polling

With Markey
With Lynch
With Brown
With Weld

Results

By county

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican * Barnstable (largest municipality: Barnstable) *

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

(largest municipality:

New Bedford New Bedford is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located on the Acushnet River in what is known as the South Coast (Massachusetts), South Coast region. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, New Bedford had a ...

) * Hampden (largest municipality: Springfield) *

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

(largest municipality: Brockton) *

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

(largest municipality:

)

By congressional district

Markey won six of nine congressional districts, with the remaining three going to Gomez, all of which elected Democrats.

Notes

References

External links

Gabriel Gomez for U.S. Senate

Stephen Lynch for Senate

Ed Markey for Senate

Michael Sullivan for Senate

Daniel Winslow for Senate

Campaign finance
at

OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks and publishes data on campaign finance and lobbying, including a revolving door database which documents the individuals who have worked in both the public sector an ...

Collected news and commentary
at ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...

''
Collected news and commentary
at the ''

Boston Herald The ''Boston Herald'' is an American conservative daily newspaper whose primary market is Boston, Massachusetts, and its surrounding area. It was founded in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States. It has been awarde ...

'' {{Federal elections in Massachusetts footer

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

Massachusetts 2013 Massachusetts 2013 United States Senate 2013 Ed Markey