Stephen Lynch

Stephen Lynch
Current candidacy
Running for U.S. Senate, Massachusetts
Date of primary	April 30, 2013
General election	June 25, 2013
Current office
U.S. House, Massachusetts, District 8
In office
October 16, 2001-Present
Term ends
January 3, 2015
Years in position	12
Party	Democratic
Predecessor	Michael Capuano (D)
Compensation
Base salary	$174,000/year
Elections and appointments
Last election	November 6, 2012
First elected	October 16, 2001
Next election	November 4, 2014
Campaign $	$7,534,709
Term limits	N/A
Prior offices
Massachusetts State Senate
1996-2001
Massachusetts House of Representatives
1995-1996
Education
High school	South Boston High School
Bachelor's	Wentworth Institute of Technology (1988)
Master's	Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government
J.D.	Boston College (1991)
Personal
Birthday	March 31, 1955
Place of birth	Boston
Profession	Attorney, union leader
Net worth	$673,008
Religion	Roman Catholic
Websites
Office website
Campaign website
Stephen Lynch campaign logo

Stephen Lynch (b. March 31, 1955) is a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Lynch serves the 8th congressional district of Massachusetts. He ran for re-election in 2012 to the 8th congressional district seat, due to redistricting, after previously serving in the 9th district.

Lynch was a 2013 Democratic candidate seeking election to the U.S. Senate from Massachusetts for the seat vacated by John Kerry. Lynch was defeated by Rep. Ed Markey in the Democratic primary on April 30, 2013.

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Lynch is a "rank-and-file Democrat".

Lynch won re-election on November 6th, 2012.

Biography

Lynch was born and raised in South Boston. A graduate of South Boston High School, he began his professional career as an ironworker. He became the union's youngest president when he assumed the position at age 30.

Lynch received additional education after initially joining the workforce. He earned a B.A. From the Wentworth Institute of Technology in 1988. Lynch received a J.D. from Boston College in 1991 and later attended Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government where he achieved a Masters Degree in Public Administration in 1999.

Career

Lynch currently serves as co-chair of the Task Force on Terrorism and Proliferation Financing. He is a co-founder of the Congressional Labor and Working Families Caucus.

Committee assignments

U.S. House

2013-2014

Lynch serves on the following committees:

• Committee on Financial Services
  • Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit
  • Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises
• United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
  • Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service, and The Census - Ranking Minority Member

2011-2012

• U.S. House Committee on Financial Services
  • Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government-Sponsored Enterprises
  • Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit
  • Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
• U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
  • Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service and Labor Policy Ranking Member
  • Subcommittee on National Security, Homeland Defense and Foreign Operations
  • Subcommittee on Technology, Information Policy, Intergovernmental Relations and Procurement Reform

Issues

Political positions

Iraq

According to Lynch's official House website, he desired to remove most of the troops from Iraq by 2011.

Specific votes

Sponsored legislation

Some of the bills Lynch introduced include:

• FEHBP Prescription Drug Integrity, Transparency, and Cost Savings Act
• United States Postal Service Pension Obligation Recalculation and Restoration Act of 2011

Fiscal Cliff

Lynch voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. He was one of 172 Democrats that voted in favor of the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257/167 vote on January 1, 2013.

Campaign themes

2012

On his campaign website, Lynch listed thirteen issues. They are:

• Economy

Excerpt: "Lynch believes the Federal government needs to create conditions that will induce the private sector to begin lending to creditworthy developers, businesses, and consumers. "

• Wall Street

Excerpt: "Stephen Lynch opposed the Wall Street bailout, which rewarded bankers and executives for risky behavior that drove our nation into recession. He believes we must hold Wall Street executives accountable for their actions, and he’s fighting for hard reforms to the banking system to ensure that we don’t pay for their mistakes again."

• Education

Excerpt: "Stephen Lynch believes that education is the foundation of opportunity in the United States. He supported the renewal of Head Start, the premiere early education program in the United States for more than 40 years."

• College Affordability

Excerpt: "The rising cost of attending U.S. colleges and universities is a growing concern as many students are finding that their dream of attending an institution of higher education is out of financial reach. Stephen Lynch is committed to ensuring that all qualified students are given the opportunity to achieve their dream by making college more affordable and more accessible for America’s hard-working families and students."

• Working families

Excerpt: "After working 18 years as an ironworker, Stephen Lynch knows you can’t live the American dream without a decent job. He fought for the first minimum wage increase in a decade – to ensure that the minimum wage can be a living wage."

• America's future

Excerpt: "Too many families today are worried about the burden we are putting on future generations. In order for our children to have the promise of America, we have to get our federal spending under control. Stephen Lynch has fought to end corporate bailouts and misplaced spending. And he supports “pay as you go” legislation that forces Congress to keep its book balanced, just like the rest of us."

• Afghanistan

Excerpt: "Stephen Lynch supports President Obama’s transition plan in Afghanistan, maintaining peace, and bringing our troops home as soon as possible. Having been to Afghanistan eight times, where he has met with Afghan political leaders and U.S. military leaders and soldiers, he has a keen understanding of the conditions on the ground."

• Renewable Energy

Excerpt: "Stephen Lynch believes that the federal government must take an active role in reducing our energy consumption and dependence on foreign oil, and create a secure and sustainable energy future. He supports the American Clean Energy and Security Act, which moves us toward these goals by promoting renewable, clean energy resources, energy efficiency, reducing global warming pollution, and transitioning to a clean energy economy."

• Health Care

Excerpt: "Stephen Lynch believes that every American should have access to quality healthcare, regardless of their employment status or income level."

• Iraq

Excerpt: "Stephen Lynch supported the Obama Administration’s removal of U.S. military forces in Iraq. Lynch believes that there is still a role for the U.S. to play as a partner in assisting with Iraq’s continued development."

• Labor and Working Families

Excerpt: "He believes in equal pay, prevailing wage, and the Employee Free Choice Act."

• Social Security and Retirement Security

Excerpt: "Stephen Lynch believes that it is vital to preserve Social Security for today's retirees and to strengthen it for the future as a cornerstone of the retirement plan for Americans. Social Security is a reflection of the best ideals of our nation. Based on the noble and principled notion of shared sacrifice, it is a program that has provided financial independence for generations of Americans."

• Veterans

Excerpt: "Stephen Lynch believes that one of the most important ways America can show its gratitude to its veterans for their heroic and dedicated service to our nation is by providing them with the finest medical care possible. When the Bush White House tried to close four VA hospitals in the 9th/new 8th District, Lynch successfully led the effort to keep them open. He has been a champion of health care for veterans, and was a strong supporter of the New GI bill."

Polls

General election

General candidates: Markey v. Gomez
Response	Public Policy Polling May 3, 2013	Suffolk University/News 7 May 4-7, 2013	WBUR May5-6, 2013	OnMessage May 5-7, 2013	Public Policy Polling May 13-15, 2013	Average
Ed Markey	44%	54%	46%	46%	48%	47.6%
Gabriel Gomez	40%	35%	38%	43%	41%	39.4%
Undecided	16%	11%	16%	11%	11%	13%
Number polled	1,539	500	497	800	880	843.2
Margin of error	+/-2.5	+/-4.4%	+/-4.4%	+/-3.4%	+/-3.3%	3.6%
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

The OnMessage poll from May 5-7, 2013 was commissioned jointly by the Gomez campaign and National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary candidates: Markey v. Lynch
Response	Public Policy Polling January 29-30	MassINC Polling Group February 11-13	UMass Lowell/Boston Herald March 2-March 5, 2013	Mass Inc./WBUR March 19-21,2013	Public Policy Polling March 26-27,2013	Western New England Univ April 11-18, 2013	Released by Stephen Lynch campaign April 24, 2013	Average
Ed Markey	52%	38%	50%	35%	49%	38%	44.5%	43.79%
Stephen Lynch	19%	31%	20.5%	24%	32%	15%	38.9%	25.771%
Undecided	29%	26%	30%	41%	9%	37%	16.5%	26.929%
Number polled	404	498	600	610	496	480	1,374	637.43
Margin of error	+/-4.9	+/-4.4%	+/-4%	+/-4.1%	+/-4.4%	+/-4.5%	+/-2.7%	4.14%
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

The UMASS Lowell/Boston Herald poll also indicated that, if the June 25 general election were held on that date, March 6th, Ed Markey would defeat state Representative Daniel Winslow by 23 percentage points, former Navy SEAL Gabriel Gomez by 19.5 percentage points, and former US attorney Michael Sullivan by 17 points.

MassINC Polling Group Poll

With respect to the demographics of the MassINC poll, questions regarding the Democratic primary were only asked to respondents who classified themselves as Democrat or Independent/Unenrolled. Based on the information provided in the poll, 36% of the respondents were Democrat and 53% were Independent/Unenrolled.

Elections

2013

See also: United States Senate special election in Massachusetts, 2013

Lynch sought election to the United States Senate seat vacated by John Kerry, after his confirmation by the U.S. Senate to Secretary of State.

Lynch and Ed Markey participated in six debates. Three were focused on general issues and the each of the remaining three focused on a different topic. One centered on jobs, another on domestic issues, and the final one centered on foreign affairs. The debates were held throughout the state with confirmed locations in Boston, Worcester, Springfield, Lowell, and New Bedford.

The day before the Democratic U.S. Senate primary, Lynch was sidelined by illness and unable to attend most of his scheduled public events.

Lynch was defeated by challenger Ed Markey in the Democratic primary on April 30, 2013.

Endorsements

• Massachusetts Building Trades Council

"When we get engaged in a campaign, we’re all in."

2012

See also: Redistricting in Massachusetts and United States House of Representatives elections in Massachusetts, 2012

Lynch ran for re-election in 2012. He has been redistricted and sought re-election in the 8th congressional district of Massachusetts. He faced no opposition in the Democratic primary.

U.S. House, Massachusetts, District 8 General Election, 2012
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Stephen Lynch Incumbent	71%	263,999
	Republican	Joe Selvaggi	22.1%	82,242
	N/A	All Others	0.2%	570
	N/A	Blank Votes	6.7%	24,883
Total Votes				371,694
Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State "Return of Votes"

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for Stephen Lynch, click [show] to expand the section.

2010 On November 2, 2010, Stephen Lynch won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Philip Dunkelbarger (R) and Vernon Harrison (I) in the general election. U.S. House, Massachusetts District 9 General Election, 2010 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Stephen Lynch incumbent 68.3% 157,071      Republican Vernon Harrison 26.1% 59,965      Independent Philip Dunkelbarger 5.5% 12,572      None Other 0.2% 356 Total Votes 229,964 2008 On November 4, 2008, Stephen Lynch won re-election to the United States House. He ran unopposed in the general election. U.S. House, Massachusetts District 9 General Election, 2008 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Stephen Lynch incumbent 76.3% 242,166      None Other 1% 3,128      None Blank/Scattering 22.7% 72,126 Total Votes 317,420 2006 On November 7, 2006, Stephen Lynch won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Jack Robinson (R) in the general election. U.S. House, Massachusetts District 9 General Election, 2006 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Stephen Lynch incumbent 72.2% 169,420      Republican Jack Robinson 20.1% 47,114      N/A Other 0.2% 502      N/A Blank/Scattering 7.4% 17,469 Total Votes 234,505 2004 On November 2, 2004, Stephen Lynch won re-election to the United States House. He ran unopposed in the general election. U.S. House, Massachusetts District 9 General Election, 2004 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Stephen Lynch incumbent 73.3% 218,167      N/A All Others 0.7% 2,145      N/A Blank/Scattering 26% 77,514 Total Votes 297,826 2002 On November 5, 2002, Stephen Lynch won re-election to the United States House. He ran unopposed in the general election. U.S. House, Massachusetts District 9 General Election, 2002 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Stephen Lynch incumbent 71.3% 168,055      N/A Other 0.4% 921      N/A Blank/Scattering 28.4% 66,890 Total Votes 235,866

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Lynch is available dating back to 2002. Based on available campaign finance records, Lynch raised a total of $7,534,709 during that time period. This information was last updated on May 16, 2013.

Stephen Lynch's Campaign Contribution History
Year	Office	Result	Contributions
2012	U.S. House (Massachusetts, District 8)		$729,836
2010	U.S. House (Massachusetts, District 9)		$911,231
2008	U.S. House (Massachusetts, District 9)		$1,066,677
2006	U.S. House (Massachusetts, District 9)		$1,170,450
2004	U.S. House (Massachusetts, District 9)		$1,161,368
2002	U.S. House (Massachusetts, District 9)		$2,495,147
Grand Total Raised			$7,534,709

2013

U.S. Senate Special Election

U.S. Rep. Edward Markey has raised about $4.8 million since jumping into the special election race. Markey's Democratic rival, fellow U.S. Rep. Lynch reported raising approximately $1.5 million since entering the race in late January, adding to the $745,000 left over from his last House race.

After beginning with more than $3 million in his congressional campaign account at the start of the campaign, Markey had a total of $7.8 million on hand in early April. After spending about $3.2 million, his account was left with about $4.6 million as of April 10, 2013. According to reports, more than 53 percent of the money raised by Markey came from outside of the state, with only approximately 47 percent coming from Massachusetts donors. According to Markey's campaign, approximately 83 percent of the more than 18,000 individuals who contributed to his campaign gave $100 or less.

Lynch reported spending more than $1.7 million through April 10 and had more than $514,000 left in his account for the final stretch. According to his campaign, about 93 percent of the approximately 3,300 individual donors live in Massachusetts and approximately 45 percent of those who donated to his campaign gave $100 or less.

2012

Breakdown of the source of Lynch's campaign funds before the 2012 election.

Lynch won election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012. During that election cycle, Lynch's campaign committee raised a total of $729,836 and spent $642,217.

U.S. House of Representatives, 2012 - Stephen Lynch Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$729,836
Total Spent	$642,217
Total Raised by Election Runner-up	$34,805
Total Spent by Election Runner-up	$34,803
Top contributors to Stephen Lynch's campaign committee
American Postal Workers Union	$10,000
Edwards Wildman Palmer	$10,000
International Longshoremens Assn	$10,000
Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers	$10,000
Ironworkers Union	$10,000
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Public Sector Unions	$79,000
Building Trade Unions	$59,500
Lawyers/Law Firms	$53,350
Securities & Investment	$41,500
Industrial Unions	$38,000

Analysis

Lifetime voting record

See also: Lifetime voting records of United States Senators and Representatives

According to the website GovTrack, Lynch missed 313 of 8,262 roll call votes from Oct 2001 to Mar 2013, which is 3.8% of votes during that period. This is worse than the median of 2.2% among the lifetime records of representatives currently serving.

Congressional staff salaries

See also: Staff salaries of United States Senators and Representatives

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Lynch paid his congressional staff a total of $1,053,822 in 2011. He ranked 87th on the list of the highest paid Democratic Representative Staff Salaries and he ranked 112th overall of the highest paid Representative Staff Salaries in 2011. Overall, Massachusetts ranked 2nd in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.

Net worth

See also: Net Worth of United States Senators and Representatives

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Lynch's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $12,018 and $1,333,998. This averages to $673,008, which is a 7.94% increase since 2010. This is lower than the $5,107,874 average net worth for Democratic representatives in 2011.

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Lynch's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $6,009 and $1,240,998. That averages to $623,503.50, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Representatives in 2010 of $4,465,875.

National Journal vote ratings

See also: National Journal vote ratings

Each year, National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted, as compared to other members, in the previous year. More information about the analysis process can be found on the vote ratings page.

2012

According to the data released in 2013, Lynch was ranked the 129th most liberal representative during 2012. This was the most conservative ranking held by a representative of Massachusetts in 2012.

2011

According to the data released in 2012, Stephen Lynch was ranked the 123rd most liberal representative during 2011.

Personal

Lynch is married to Margaret Shaughnessy. They have one daughter.

Recent news

This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Stephen + Lynch + Massachusetts + House

All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.

Stephen Lynch News Feed

• At IRS scandal hearing, Democratic Congressman Stephen Lynch says 'there ... - MassLive.com
• Stephen Lynch Democrat (Elected 2001), MA House district 8 - MAPLight.org (blog)
• Polls: Ed Markey Leads Stephen Lynch In Massachusetts Senate Race - Huffington Post
• Boston City Councilor Rob Consalvo officially announced his campaign for ... - Boston Globe
• Don't Hold Your Breath for Impeachment - RushLimbaugh.com (subscription)
• Obama Teeters At A Beltway Tipping Point - Huffington Post
• The IRS was doing its job - Baltimore Sun (blog)
• IRS hearing live video stream: House Oversight and Government Reform ... - WPTV
• The Sun buries Obama scandals - Baltimore Sun
• I Don't Think We're in Kansas Anymore, Keystone - The American Prospect

External links

• Stephen Lynch's Official Campaign Website</ref>
• Official Facebook Page

• Social media:
  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Twitter
• Biographies:
  • U.S. Congress
  • NNDB
  • Wikipedia
• Political profiles:
  • GovTrack
  • National Journal
  • OpenCongress
  • Project Vote Smart
  • Roll Call
  • CongressMerge
• Financial:
  • FEC
  • OpenSecrets.org
  • LegiStorm.com
• Interest group ratings:
  • National Journal
  • Project Vote Smart
• Issue positions:
  • On The Issues
  • Project Vote Smart
• Public statements:
  • Project Vote Smart
• Voting record:
  • Project Vote Smart
  • Washington Post
• Media appearances:
  • C-SPAN
• Media coverage:
  • Washington Post

References

Political offices
Preceded by Michael Capuano	U.S. House of Representatives - Massachusetts District 8 2013-Present	Succeeded by -
Preceded by Joe Moakley	U.S. House of Representatives - Massachusetts District 9 2001-2013	Succeeded by William Keating (D)