2026 United States Senate election in Massachusetts

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2026 United States Senate election in Massachusetts
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Party Democratic Republican
Incumbent U.S. senator

Ed Markey
Democratic



The 2026 United States Senate election in Massachusetts will be held on November 3, 2026, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Incumbent two-term Democratic Senator Ed Markey, was re-elected in 2020 with 66.2% of the vote and is running for re-election to a third full term.

Contents

Markey, who will be 80 years old at the time of the 2026 election, has faced calls to retire due to his age. [1]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

  • Ed Markey, incumbent U.S. Senator (2013–present) [2]
  • Alex Rikleen, history teacher [3]

Publicly expressed interest

  • Earl Phalen, nonprofit CEO [4]

Potential

Endorsements

Ed Markey
U.S. senators
U.S. representatives
State legislators
  • Marc Pacheco, former state senator from the 1st Plymouth and Bristol district (1993–2025) [5]
  • Michael Rodrigues, state senator from the 1st Bristol and Plymouth district (2011–present) [5]
  • 13 state representatives [5]
County officials

Fundraising

Campaign finance reports as of June 30, 2025
CandidateRaisedSpentCash on hand
Ed Markey (D)$4,099,317$3,210,652$2,540,642
Alex Rikleen (D)$29,835$19,160$10,675
Source: Federal Election Commission [11]

Republican primary

Candidates

Publicly expressed interest

  • John Deaton, attorney and nominee for U.S. Senate in 2024 [12]

Declined

Other candidates

Independent

Filed paperwork

  • Philip Peter Devincentis Jr. [15]

General election

Predictions

SourceRankingAs of
Inside Elections [16] Solid DAugust 12, 2025
The Cook Political Report [17] Solid DAugust 18, 2025
Sabato's Crystal Ball [18] Safe DAugust 12, 2025
Race To The WH [19] Safe DSeptember 4, 2025

Polling

Hypothetical polling
Ed Markey vs. Charlie Baker
Poll sourceDate(s)
administered		Sample
size [a] 		Margin
of error		Ed
Markey (D)		Charlie
Baker (R)		OtherUndecided
UMass Amherst/YouGov [20] [A] February 14–20, 2025700 (A)± 4.8%35%33%–33%
MassINC Polling Group [21] October 29 – November 1, 2024582 (LV)± 4.9%34%40%7% [b] 19%
Ed Markey vs. John Deaton
Poll sourceDate(s)
administered		Sample
size [a] 		Margin
of error		Ed
Markey (D)		John
Deaton (R)		OtherUndecided
SurveyUSA [22] [B] February 28 – March 4, 2025775 (RV)–45%26%–30%

Notes

  1. 1 2 Key:
    A – all adults
    RV – registered voters
    LV – likely voters
    V – unclear
  2. ↑ "Would not vote for Senate" & "Another candidate" with 3%; "Prefer not to say" with 1%
Partisan clients
  1. ↑ Poll sponsored by WCVB
  2. ↑ Poll sponsored by the Massachusetts Responsible Alliance

References

  1. ↑ Keller, Jon (October 20, 2024). "Is it time for Ed Markey to step aside? Chairman of Massachusetts Democrats weighs in". CBS News . Retrieved December 4, 2024.
  2. ↑ Medsger, Matthew (October 27, 2024). "Ed Markey says he will seek a third term in 2026, when he will be 80 years old". Boston Herald .
  3. ↑ Garrity, Kelly (May 30, 2025). "Meet Markey's primary challenger". Politico . Retrieved June 5, 2025.
  4. ↑ Medsger, Matthew (June 4, 2025). "Another potential Ed Markey challenger emerges calling for fresh perspective". Boston Herald . Retrieved June 6, 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Garrity, Kelly (July 1, 2025). "Markey marks his territory". Politico . Retrieved July 1, 2025.
  6. ↑ Rep. Jake Auchincloss 'On the Record' about TikTok's future, potential Senate bid. WCVB-TV . July 13, 2025. Retrieved July 15, 2025– via YouTube.
  7. ↑ Garrity, Kelly (April 24, 2025). "The Durbin reverb". Politico . Retrieved July 9, 2025.
  8. ↑ Stout, Matt (June 25, 2025). "In early show of political muscle, Ed Markey gets Elizabeth Warren's endorsement". The Boston Globe . Retrieved June 25, 2025.
  9. ↑ Castellano, Jessie (July 31, 2025). "This Local Congressman Endorsed Sen. Ed Markey For Reelection". Patch Media . Retrieved July 31, 2025.
  10. ↑ Micek, John (July 8, 2025). "Western Mass.'s most powerful pol endorses Ed Markey's 2026 reelection bid". The Republican . Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  11. ↑ "2026 Election United States Senate - Massachusetts". fec.gov. Federal Election Commission . Retrieved April 23, 2025.
  12. ↑ Van Buskirk, Chris (May 7, 2025). "John Deaton, former challenger to Warren, considering a run against Ed Markey". Boston Herald . Retrieved May 7, 2025.
  13. ↑ Altimari, Daniela; Ellen McIntire, Mary (January 7, 2025). "An early look at potentially vulnerable senators in 2026". Roll Call . Retrieved January 7, 2025. Baker is currently the head of the NCAA and a spokesman for the organization dismissed the rumors, saying Baker is 'not running for any political office.'
  14. ↑ Van Buskirk, Chris (April 29, 2025). "Bellingham Republican setting sites on potentially running for Mass. constitutional office". Boston Herald . Retrieved April 29, 2025.
  15. ↑ "Form 2 for Report FEC-1880236". Federal Election Commission . Retrieved May 28, 2025.
  16. ↑ "Senate Ratings". Inside Elections. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  17. ↑ "2026 CPR Senate Race Ratings". Cook Political Report. Retrieved February 11, 2025.
  18. ↑ "2026 Senate ratings". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved February 13, 2025.
  19. ↑ "2026 Senate Forecast". Race to the WH. Retrieved March 19, 2025.
  20. ↑ Medsger, Matthew (February 26, 2025). "Charlie Baker 'does not intend to run' for Senate, despite poll showing him right on Ed Markey's heels". Boston Herald . Retrieved April 29, 2025.
  21. ↑ "The MassINC Polling Group - Survey of 582 likely voters in Massachusetts" (PDF). Squarespace . November 1, 2024. Retrieved April 29, 2025.
  22. ↑ "Once Messaging is Shared, Republican John Deaton Leads Democrat Ed Markey in MA 2026 US Senate Race, Despite Deeply Unpopular Trump". SurveyUSA. March 6, 2025. Retrieved April 29, 2025.
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