Politics
Republican voters will choose Elizabeth Warren’s challenger, and voters are choosing the clerk for the state’s highest court.
Massachusetts voters are deciding a few competitive races during Tuesday’s primary, including which long-shot Republican will run against Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
While most of the races for local and federal office are uncontested, voters have a chance to decide on Republican challengers and other local representatives in the largely Democrat-controlled Massachusetts.
As of 7 a.m. Tuesday, nearly half a million residents had cast their votes in the state’s primary, which includes the Republican candidate for one U.S. Senate seat. Voters are also choosing a Republican candidate to challenge Rep. Stephen Lynch, who represents part of Boston and areas south of the city.
Voters are also deciding on three contested seats on the Governor’s Council, around 30 contested seats in the state legislature, and the Democratic nominee for clerk of the Supreme Judicial Court for Suffolk County.
More than 407,000 Democrats, 87,000 Republicans, and 3,000 Libertarians have all cast their ballots as of Tuesday morning, according to the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth.
Polls close at 8 p.m. Follow along here for the latest updates.
Republican primary for U.S. Senate
Warren, the senior senator from Massachusetts, is running for her third term unopposed in this primary. However, three Republicans — Ian Cain, John Deaton, and Robert Antonellis — are vying to challenge her in November.
Cain, Quincy’s first Black and openly gay president of their city council, announced his bid in April after registering as a Republican in late February. Deaton is a former U.S. Marine and cryptocurrency attorney who recently moved to Massachusetts.
Antonellis, an engineer and graduate of University of Massachusetts Amherst, said any Republican running for office should support former President Donald Trump. Cain and Deaton won’t vote for Trump, Antonellis writes on his website.
Republican primary for 8th Congressional District
Lynch, who represents Easton, South Boston, and parts of of Plymouth and Norfolk counties in the state’s 8th district, was elected to Congress in 2001 after a special election.
Robert Burke and James Govatsos are vying to be his challenger, Boston.com previously reported. While Govatsos did not reply to multiple requests for comment, Burke submitted responses to a Q and A on healthcare and immigration.
Supreme Judicial Court for Suffolk County
Boston City Councilor Erin Murphy and attorney Allison Cartwright have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars and collected prominent endorsements to be clerk of the state’s highest court.
Two Democrats are competing for the position, which primarily handles admission of lawyers to the bar and matters of attorney discipline. Incumbent Maura Doyle, who held the seat for nearly 30 years, is not running for reelection.
Murphy is more moderate, with endorsements from Lynch and former Boston Mayor Ray Flynn, WBUR reported. Cartwright is running as the progressive choice, with endorsements from Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and Rep. Ayanna Pressley.
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