Progressive Caucus co-chair endorses Kennedy in Massachusetts Senate primary

Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), the co-chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, on Tuesday endorsed Rep. Joe Kennedy III, who is mounting a primary challenge to Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.).

“For as long as I’ve known him, Joe has been a leading progressive voice in Congress, fighting for Medicare for All, demanding real mental health parity, leading our efforts to protect LGBTQ Americans, pushing for racial, social, economic and climate justice,” Pocan said in a video tweeted by the Kennedy campaign.

Grateful to have the support of my friend and progressive champion, @MarkPocan. pic.twitter.com/FTLarm0fgN

— Joe Kennedy III (@joekennedy) June 9, 2020

“And running across the country to help Democrats win the seats and voters we need to actually pass our biggest, boldest reforms,” Pocan added. “Now more than ever, as our nation rebuilds, as our party fights to undo the damage by Donald Trump, we need new leaders who will move beyond the failed policies of the past, leaders who will carry out our country towards a progressive future. And we won’t get there with the status quo.”

Pocan’s endorsement stands in contrast to many figures on the party’s left flank who have endorsed Markey, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), whose signature Green New Deal legislation Markey sponsored in the Senate, and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), who served as a national co-chair for Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-Vt.) 2020 presidential campaign.

“Ed Markey is a proud and strong progressive champion for working families, not just in Massachusetts but across the country. And his leadership in authoring the Green New Deal, along with me, and carrying it in the United States Senate is emblematic of the kind of work that he does for working families across the country,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a video endorsement last September.

Massachusetts is set to hold its Senate primary Sept. 1. Kennedy leads Markey by 9 points, according to the RealClearPolitics average of polls.