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A substantial share of Marblehead voters had already made their choices before polls opened Tuesday.
As of 7 a.m., 2,521 ballots had been cast through early in-person and mail voting, according to state ballot statistics — about 14.8% of the town’s 17,057 registered voters. That was higher than the statewide pre-Election Day turnout of about 10.7%. Of 2,851 mail ballots sent to Marblehead voters, 1,964 had been returned, a return rate of about 68.9%, while another 557 ballots were cast during the week of early in-person voting.
The advance vote also underscored where much of the competition lies on Marblehead’s ballot. Democratic ballots accounted for 2,196 of the 2,521 ballots already cast, or about 87%, compared with 325 Republican ballots.
Those figures do not necessarily reflect voters’ formal party registrations because Massachusetts allows unenrolled voters to choose either party’s ballot in a primary. But they show that, even before Election Day voting began, participation in Marblehead was being driven overwhelmingly by the Democratic contests for U.S. Senate, the open 6th Congressional District seat and Governor’s Council.
Under overcast skies and temperatures near 70, Election Day voting began at 7 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 1, with Marblehead carrying an unusually personal stake in several of the races before voters.
U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, who grew up sailing and swimming in Marblehead Harbor, is challenging longtime U.S. Sen. Edward Markey for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate. Moulton’s run has also opened the town’s congressional seat for the first time in more than a decade, while Marblehead attorney Diann Baylis is seeking a seat on the Governor’s Council.
Polls close at 8 p.m., with the primary winners advancing to the Nov. 3 general election. There are no local town questions on Tuesday’s ballot; Marblehead holds its municipal elections every June.
The Senate primary is the marquee race on local ballots and one with national implications for a Democratic Party grappling with questions about generational change.
Markey, 80, first won the seat in a 2013 special election and is seeking reelection. Moulton, 47, has argued that Markey should retire and has voiced support for a constitutional amendment setting age limits for members of Congress.
A Harvard-educated Marine Corps veteran who served four tours in Iraq, Moulton first won his House seat in 2014 by upsetting incumbent U.S. Rep. John Tierney in the Democratic primary. He went on to win five reelection campaigns, sometimes without opposition.
Two lesser-known Democrats, William Gates and Alexander Rikleen, are also on the Senate primary ballot. Republican John Deaton, who challenged Sen. Elizabeth Warren in 2024, is unopposed for his party’s nomination.
Moulton’s ties to Marblehead run deep. He and his wife, Liz, bought a five-bedroom home off Beacon Hill Road for $3.1 million this year, moving back to the town where he grew up.
His Senate campaign has also created another consequential choice for Marblehead voters by leaving the 6th Congressional District seat open for the first time since Moulton defeated Tierney 12 years ago.
Five Democrats remain actively in the race: Beth Andres-Beck, John Beccia, Jamie Zahlaway Belsito, Dan Koh and Tram Nguyen.
Mariah Lancaster, a Salem veterinarian and former congressional aide whose name remains on Tuesday’s ballot, ended their campaign Saturday and endorsed Nguyen. Lancaster urged supporters to rally behind the Andover state representative in the closing days of the race.
Nguyen has leaned heavily on her record in the Massachusetts House, arguing that her experience turning Democratic priorities into legislation distinguishes her in a field where the candidates broadly agree on many issues. Andres-Beck and Beccia, both newcomers to elected politics, have instead pitched their outsider status as an asset.
Affordability, housing, health care and opposition to the Trump administration have dominated the campaign. The candidates together have raised more than $9 million, according to campaign finance filings, while outside groups have also poured money into the contest during its final stretch.
Two Republicans, John Field and Micah Jones, are competing for their party’s nomination in a district that leans heavily Democratic.
Farther up the ballot, Gov. Maura Healey faces long-shot Democratic challengers Matthew Dewar and Andrea James as she seeks a second term.
Two Republicans, Brian Shortsleeve and Michael Minogue, are competing for their party’s nomination after Mike Kennealy, a former state housing secretary, suspended his campaign in April. The winner of the Republican primary will face the Democratic nominee in November.
Marblehead also has one of its own on the ballot farther down the Democratic side.
Diann Baylis, a Marblehead immigration and family law attorney, is challenging incumbent Terrence W. Kennedy of Lynnfield for the Sixth District seat on the Governor’s Council, the eight-member elected body that reviews and votes on gubernatorial nominations for judges and members of the Parole Board, among other appointments.
Kennedy has represented the district since 2011. Baylis has argued that her work representing immigrants and families would bring a different perspective to a council whose decisions shape the state’s courts and criminal justice system.
Marblehead is split into six precincts, and residents must vote at their assigned location. Precincts 1 and 2 vote at Abbot Hall, 188 Washington St., while Precincts 3, 4, 5 and 6 vote at the Marblehead High School Field House, 2 Humphrey St. Residents unsure of their precinct can look it up on the secretary of the commonwealth’s website or call the town clerk’s office.
Voters registered as unenrolled, rather than with a political party, may request either the Democratic or Republican ballot without changing their registration.
Early in-person voting ran from Aug. 22 through Aug. 28 at Abbot Hall. Mail ballots must reach the town clerk’s office by 8 p.m. Tuesday to be counted.
Voters who registered by mail and are casting a ballot for the first time may be asked to show identification, such as a driver’s license or a recent utility bill listing their name and address.
Town Clerk Robin A. Michaud’s office, based at Abbot Hall, can answer questions about registration, party affiliation or precinct assignments and can be reached at 781-631-0528.
Whatever happens Tuesday, the larger electorate gets its turn Nov. 3, when the nominees chosen in the primary move on to the general election and Massachusetts voters also decide nine statewide ballot questions, including a proposal that would create same-day voter registration for future elections.
State primaries typically draw substantially fewer voters than general elections. But in Marblehead, where a hometown congressman is trying to become a senator, his departure has produced a rare open congressional seat and a town resident is seeking a place on the Governor’s Council, this year’s ballot carries more local consequence than most September primaries.
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