This 80-year-old Might Survive The Democratic Tea Party

WORCESTER, Massachusetts — Ed Markey’s campaign knows he is old. He is the oldest senator Massachusetts has ever had and the oldest Senate Democrat seeking reelection in the midterms. He has served in Congress since before his primary challenger, 47-year-old Rep. Seth Moulton, was even born.

So at a rally earlier this month, his allies don’t try to hide the fact that Markey is an 80-year-old man, nor can they. Rather, they paint his age as battle-hardened experience, in a move that would have made Ronald Reagan proud.

“You tell me a time that’s more important for us to have someone in Washington … that knows the issues, knows every relationship down there, and has the experience to fight the fight,” says Massachusetts state Sen. Michael Moore before a crowd of young families, even younger students and a handful of senior citizens in this post-industrial college town.

Moore’s talking points, along with the claps and cheers coming from the crowd, feel off-key at this moment in American politics. More than ever before, people are frustrated with the notion that Washington is ruled by aging politicians, including those who struggle to do their jobs amid declining health. The monthslong absence of Mitch McConnell, the 84-year-old former Senate GOP leader still recovering from a fall and hospitalization, is only the latest reminder. And, of course, there are the six lawmakers who have died in the current Congress.

Democrats, it seems, should be particularly hostile to returning their old leaders to power. This is a party still traumatized by Joe Biden’s presidency — the questions about his mental faculties, his frailty in public and the collapse of his 2024 presidential campaign after his debacle of a debate with Donald Trump (himself now an 80-year-old). The party establishment also appears to be facing its own tea party uprising, with growing calls for generational change: Seven Democratic House incumbents have lost primaries so far, six to candidates who are younger.

But much of the party’s insurgent energy is coming from the left — and that might be what saves Markey.

Unlike other long-serving Democrats who have been felled by democratic socialists, Markey is a progressive facing a more moderate rival.

Markey has the backing of major lefty politicians of all ages, from Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. He is co-author of the Green New Deal and champions Medicare for All. Speaking at the Worcester rally, he pledged to protect affordable health care and education programs, raise taxes on the wealthy and lower energy and housing prices for working families.

In a statement for this article, Markey touted the endorsements of the Sunrise Movement, College Democrats of Massachusetts and other youth-focused organizations, adding, “They know that this election demands a proven progressive fighter who will work alongside the next generation to build the future they deserve.”

Moulton is seen as the more centrist candidate, although on paper, the two candidates’ policies are largely aligned. The congressmember, however, has been criticized by transgender advocates and the left wing of the party after he said he didn’t want his daughters “getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete” in 2024. (At a recent debate with Markey, he apologized to those in the trans community who felt hurt by his comments.) Like Markey, Moulton has also campaigned on lowering the cost of living, instituting a national wealth tax on mega-millionaires and expanding free community college.

There’s one key area where he splits with progressives, though: Moulton favors a public option that would compete with private insurers, rather than a single-payer Medicare for All system. Still, he’s marketed himself as a progressive candidate that will bring much needed generational change and recently received the endorsement of The Boston Globe.

“This isn’t ‘change for change’s sake, or an endorsement of youth for the sake of youth alone,’” Moulton’s campaign said, citing the newspaper’s endorsement. “The Globe made clear that Seth brings the proven leadership and progressive vision needed to tackle the affordability crisis, concluding that ‘the future must be now.’”

The campaign also cautioned that “Sen. Markey’s decision to cling to power” at the age of 80 — 86 at the end of the next term — puts progressive priorities at risk.

There are warning signs for Markey that suggest he might not be entirely safe. Moulton has outraised Markey by nearly a million dollars as of early August, reflecting a broader fundraising advantage among young challengers over older incumbents. And the recent defeat of Connecticut Rep. John Larson — a 78-year-old New England progressive who has represented his district since 1999 — against a Democrat 31 years his junior is fueling speculation that Markey could similarly go down.

Still, Markey has been here before. Six years ago, he faced a primary challenge from a different next-generation Democrat from the center left, and with an enviable Massachusetts pedigree: Rep. Joe Kennedy III. But Markey cultivated an unlikely base among young progressives that helped carry him to victory. Online, they formed what became known as the “Markeyverse” — a network of fan accounts and social media posts that transformed him into a youth icon. That coalition has endured: Some of the most enthusiastic supporters of Markey’s bid for another term are voters young enough to be his grandchildren.

Ahead of the Sept. 1 primary election, Markey is currently the favorite. He has led in public polls this year by varying margins, though recent contests in Michigan and Wisconsin — both of which saw major discrepancies between the polls and the ultimate results — suggest any outcome is possible.

That makes Massachusetts a real test of what the party values more: age or ideology. If Markey does survive, it will be clear that whatever qualms Democrats have about our American gerontocracy, they’re willing to overlook it when their politics align.

At a rally for Markey’s reelection bid, it is not surprising to find Markey supporters. But what is notable are the justifications for backing the octogenarian — even amid acknowledgements they wish Markey was younger.

Some cite his stamina. Indeed, when Markey speaks in front of the Worcester crowd, it’s hard to tell that he had stayed up until 4:17 a.m. to vote against Todd Blanche’s attorney general nomination and was now speaking to his constituents with a booming voice less than 12 hours later.

“He seems energetic and willing to fight. You can see his energy even today,” says Evan Malia, 24, one hand on his child’s stroller. “So I don't think right now that age is a big deal.”

Others say yes, Congress is too old, but leave Markey out of it.

“I worry that if we focus too much on just the age of the candidate rather than what they’re saying, it then becomes just retaliatory voting for people like Seth Moulton, rather than looking at the whole picture,” says Anya Drasin, a 19-year-old student fellow on the Markey campaign.

Similar rationales are repeated throughout the conversations I have with Markey supporters: At the top of the list is the need for an experienced progressive to lead the way — an argument Markey’s campaign has made central to its defense. It’s a potentially compelling argument considering the wave of young, but green, Democrats who are being elected.

Markey, they add, also supports other young progressives — could a man like that really be guilty of upholding the gerontocracy? Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s name comes up frequently as a mentee of Markey who might one day become his successor. Pressley has endorsed Markey’s reelection campaign, saying he is a “committed partner in our shared work to advance justice for the people of Massachusetts.”

“Everyone around him is a younger progressive and all over on his team. So that’s a good sign for the future,” Malia says, nodding to the group of young student volunteers who are running around with hands full of campaign signs.

Perhaps the darkest, if most practical, calculation I hear comes from Catherine Rosch, a 32-year-old doctoral student who is willing to consider the worst-case scenarios for an 80-year-old politician.

It is taboo to consider the death or incapacitation of a lawmaker. For Rosch, though, blue Massachusetts offers some insurance, since it is one of the 46 states that allows a governor to pick a temporary senator in the case of a vacancy. Gov. Maura Healey, who is favored to win a second term in November, would likely choose another Democrat who — Rosch hopes — would be aligned with Markey, a man who she says shares 98 percent of her political beliefs.

“We’re also in a pretty lucky situation,” she says. “If, God forbid, anything would happen, we would be able to find a good replacement senator who might not be as brave as Markey, but is a hell of a lot better than Seth Moulton.”

Despite all that, it is hard not to think of Markey’s age when looking at him: Although his hands are steady as he holds a microphone, they are wrinkled and freckled with age spots; his face shaded under a Boston Red Sox hat (the pride version) is deeply lined. That booming voice of his is also hoarse; dry coughs pepper his speech. Even for fans, it is undeniable, and a reason why some yearn for an alternative that’s not currently available.

“I think it is time to start also endorsing the next up-and-coming progressive,” says Mayela Morales. “We’ve just got to pass on the crown.”

This is a woman who is far too familiar with the disappointment of gerontocracy: She volunteered for Biden’s 2020 campaign in Michigan because she thought he wouldn’t seek a second term. His decision to run again frustrated Morales and many other Democrats who had hoped he’d serve as a bridge to the next generation of post-Trump leaders.

She’s showing up for Markey, however, for the same reason she continued to show up for Biden — choosing the candidate who she believes will do less harm to her neighbors — a sentiment that might just help Markey cross the finish line first, even as chatter around his age drags him down.

“I think it is more important for us to elect people that are representing our progressive values in the Senate, rather than choosing the younger candidate just because he’s younger,” Morales says. “But that also means maybe not being represented in the best way that we can be in the Senate.”

What are Democrats actually talking about when they talk about age? It is clear that a segment of the party does want real generational change.

“In an ideal world, we could count on leaders to be honest about their capacities and abilities. We could count on them to step aside when they’re no longer able to serve at the highest possible levels,” says Amanda Litman, executive director of Run for Something, a PAC that helps recruit and support young progressive candidates. “It is so clear that we cannot.”

Litman says Markey’s reelection bid “is indicative of a larger problem in the Democratic Party, which is leaders don’t know when it’s time to pass the torch.”

But conversations at the Markey rally reveal a more complicated reality for the age debate: Markey’s enduring appeal among his supporters suggests that youth is sometimes a placeholder for progressive politics. The young Democratic insurgents on the left have framed their opponents as complicit in a dysfunctional status quo. Their caricature of an old lawmaker encompasses much of what they find wrong with modern politics: complacency born out of proximity to power and wealth, and a resistance to change that might threaten either.

For Markey supporters, though he’s an old man, his ideas feel young — the kind that appeal to voters eager for change.

“If you look at what he votes for, what he fights for, it’s obvious that he’s current,” says Lehna Estes, 19, another student fellow on the campaign. “He’s fighting for an AI bill — I think that’s something that matters to my generation.”

As Celinda Lake, a veteran Democratic pollster and former Biden adviser, puts it, “If you’re defending the system, then you’re showing your age. If you’re taking on the system, then you’re showing your ideology.”

Here’s another important factor in the debate, and why age as a litmus test for fitness for office is not as clear-cut as it seems: So much of the issue is about the perception of frailty. “People manifest age in different ways,” Lake notes. Biden seemed frail — it was obvious from his slow strides and mumbled speech — and so his age was a hindrance in a way that it hasn’t been for Markey, who has kept a busy schedule popping up all over Massachusetts over the last few months.

For Richard Shea, a retired public school teacher, if Markey could no longer communicate or do the job, he should step aside. But Shea sees a man who is still sharp — when Markey first introduced himself to the crowd, Shea shouted out, “Your mind is as sharp as a tack,” earning a smile from the senator.

As our conversation ends, I ask Shea his own age. He is 85, two months shy of 86 — roughly the age Markey would be at the end of another term. He looks back at me and asks, “Do you think I’m senile? Do you think I’m not capable?”

Shea’s point also nods to the political stakes at play. The perception of frailty can signal more than physical decline — it can suggest an inability to fight, whether on the campaign trail or against a political system many Democrats believe needs changing. For voters looking for a progressive champion, then, the question isn’t simply how old a candidate is, but whether they still appear capable of taking on that fight. Markey’s supporters see him doing just that.

“I think the senator has always fought,” says Estes. “And I think that now more than ever we need to care and fight for progressive ideologies.”

Markey makes the same point as he ends his rally speech.

“For every single child sitting on every single porch, dreaming about what they can be in this great country,” Markey says, “we’re going to need people on the floor of the United States Senate who are fighting every day.”

As the crowd cheers, a young child in a Super Mario hat and a large Ed Markey for Senate sticker plastered on his chest — one of the handful of children present at the rally — watches from below. It is a fitting audience for a closing argument about the future, even if the senator isn’t passing the torch on to the next generation just yet.