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Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District elections, 2014

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Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District
General Election Date
November 4, 2014
Primary Date
September 9, 2014
November 4 Election Winner:
Seth Moulton Democratic Party
Incumbent prior to election:
John Tierney Democratic Party
John F Tierney.jpg
Race Ratings
Cook Political Report: Toss Up[1]

Sabato's Crystal Ball: Lean D[2]

Fairvote's Monopoly Politics: Lean D[3]
Massachusetts U.S. House Elections
District 1 • District 2 • District 3 • District 4 • District 5 • District 6 • District 7 • District 8 • District 9
2014 U.S. Senate Elections
2014 U.S. House Elections
Flag of Massachusetts.png

The 6th Congressional District of Massachusetts held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014.

SimmeringRace.jpg

The incumbent was John Tierney (D), who was first elected in 1996. He lost his bid for re-election to Seth Moulton (D) in the Democratic primary on September 9, 2014. Republican candidate Richard Tisei (R) won his primary by running unopposed to secure the Republican candidacy. Moulton defeated Tisei in the general election on November 4, 2014.

The election displayed an interesting selection of politically moderate candidates that carry appeal across party lines. Tisei was openly gay and showed strong support of small, local businesses. Tisei often went against Republican Party lines on same-sex marriage and has supported gay communities in his home district. Moulton was an Iraq war veteran and a graduate from Harvard University. He touted his practical knowledge of world regions, such as Iraq and how the United States should address critical global issues.[4]

Moulton was able to defeat Tierney despite having less financial resources at his disposal.[5] This pitted Moulton against a Republican candidate in Tisei who lost in a highly contested race against Tierney in 2014. Polling leading into the election showed Tisei maintaining leading margins over Moulton according to Emerson College polls. Mid-October polls showed Tisei with a three point margin lead over Moulton. Both candidates were viewed favorably by the voters in the district with Emerson College polling showing they both exceed 50 percent approval ratings in October.

Tisei was included in the National Republican Congressional Committee's Young Guns program.[6] This program highlighted challengers who represented the GOP's best chances to pick up congressional seats in the general election.[7]

Candidate Filing Deadline Primary Election General Election
May 6, 2014
September 9, 2014
November 4, 2014

Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Massachusetts utilizes a semi-closed primary system. An unaffiliated voter is allowed to vote in the primary election of his or her choice.[8][9]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Voter registration: To vote in the primary, voters had to register by August 20, 2014. For the general election, the voter registration deadline was October 15, 2014.[10]

See also: Massachusetts elections, 2014

Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was John Tierney (D), who was first elected in 1996. Tierney lost to Seth Moulton in the Democratic primary on September 9, 2014.

Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District is located in the northeastern portion of the state and includes parts of Middlesex and Essex counties.[11]

Candidates

General election candidates


September 9, 2014, primary results
Democratic Party Democratic Primary

Republican Party Republican Primary

Elections

General election results

The 6th Congressional District of Massachusetts held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Seth Moulton (D) defeated Richard Tisei (R) and Chris Stockwell (I) in the general election.

U.S. House, Massachusetts District 6 General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngSeth Moulton 53.6% 149,638
     Republican Richard Tisei 40.2% 111,989
     Independent Chris Stockwell 3.7% 10,373
     Write-in Other 0.1% 219
     Blank None 2.4% 6,700
Total Votes 278,919
Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State Official Results

Primary results

U.S. House, Massachusetts District 6 Democratic Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngSeth Moulton 50.8% 36,575
John Tierney Incumbent 40.1% 28,915
Marisa DeFranco 6% 4,293
John Devine 2.1% 1,527
John Gutta 1% 691
All others 0% 36
Total Votes 72,037
Source: Massachusetts Elections Division

Race background

Politico published a list in August 2013 of the five primaries to watch in 2014. Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District was included on the list.[17] This proved true when Tierney lost his bid for re-election to Seth Moulton in the Democratic primary.

Vulnerable after the scandal surrounding his wife, Tierney barely managed to win re-election in 2012.[17] In 2010, Patrice Tierney pleaded guilty to helping her brother file false tax returns in connection with his operation of an illegal offshore casino.[17] Republicans criticized Tierney about his wife, alleging that he was fully aware of her conduct.[17] He ultimately defeated Richard Tisei (R) by fewer than 4,000 votes — or 1 percent of the vote -- in the general election.

Tisei, a former state house minority leader, ran again in 2014. He will face Seth Moulton (D) in the general election.[17]

Key votes

Below are important votes Tierney cast during the 113th Congress.

Government shutdown

See also: United States budget debate, 2013

Voted "No" On September 30, 2013, the House passed a final stopgap spending bill before the shutdown went into effect. The bill included a one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate and would have also stripped the bill of federal subsidies for congressional members and staff. It passed through the House with a vote of 228-201.[18] At 1 a.m. on October 1, 2013, one hour after the shutdown officially began, the House voted to move forward with going to a conference. In short order, Sen. Harry Reid rejected the call to conference.[19] Tierney voted against the stopgap spending bill that would have delayed the individual mandate.[20]

Yea3.png The shutdown ended on October 16, 2013, when the House took a vote on HR 2775 after it was approved by the Senate. The bill to reopen the government lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies.[21] The House passed the legislation shortly after the Senate, by a vote of 285-144, with all 144 votes against the legislation coming from Republican members. Tierney voted for HR 2775.[22]

Issues

Campaign accounts

Reports circulated in July 2014 that Tisei, a former state senator, spent funds from his legislative campaign account on polling for a congressional bid in 2012. Under campaign finance law, this is prohibited as only federal funds may be spent on federal races.[23]

Republican convention

Richard Tisei (R) announced on March 21, 2014, that he would not attend the state Republican convention because of his opposition to the state committee’s more socially conservative platform.[24][25] The Massachusetts Republican State Committee approved language in its party platform in February 2014 that included opposition to abortion and gay marriage.[24][26]

“I don’t want to go and be seen in any way to be endorsing that. I don’t really feel comfortable being at a convention where the platform takes the party backward, rather than forward, as far as appealing to a large group of Massachusetts voters,” Tisei said.[24] Tisei, who is gay, got married in 2013.[26]

Polls

Tierney v. Tisei

General election match-up, Tierney v. Tisei
Poll John Tierney (D) Richard Tisei (R)UndecidedMargin of ErrorSample Size
Emerson College
October 13-14, 2014
 40%43%15%+/-4.85400
Emerson College
September 2-4, 2014
 43%51%6%+/-4.3500
Emerson College
June 12-18, 2014
 40%45%16%+/-6.12253
Emerson College
April 3-7, 2014
 44%44%13%+/-5.4326
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. 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

Democratic primary

Democratic primary
Poll John Tierney (Inc.) Seth MoultonMarisa DeFrancoJohn DevineUndecidedMargin of ErrorSample Size
Emerson College
September 2-4, 2014
 47%44%4%1%6%+/-5.3343
Emerson College
April 3-7, 2014
 64%10%10%2%14%+/-5.4326
DCCC
March 26-27, 2014
 64%17%0%0%20%+/-4.9402
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. 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

Moulton v. Tisei

General election match-up, Moulton v. Tisei
Poll Seth Moulton (D) Richard Tisei (R)Margin of ErrorSample Size
Tarrance Group
September 23-25, 2014
 40%41%+/-4.9400
WBUR/MassINC Polling Group
September 22-24, 2014
 47%39%+/-4.9400
314 PAC/Municipoll
September 12-14, 2014
 49%31%+/-4.4490
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC)
September 13, 2014
 49%41%+/-4.7432
Emerson College
September 2-4, 2014
 44%36%+/-4.3500
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. 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

Endorsements

Richard Tisei

  • The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund endorsed Tisei on February 25, 2014.[28]
  • The National Republican Congressional Committee added Tisei to their "On the Radar" list in November 2013. According to the NRCC, candidates that made this list were set to receive "...the tools they need to run successful, winning campaigns against their Democratic opponents."[29][30]

Media

Richard Tisei

Richard Tisei's July 2014 ad, "Tisei's Take on Leadership."
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce's May 2014 ad for Tisei.


  • The U.S. Chamber of Commerce launched an ad campaign for Richard Tisei in his bid against incumbent John Tierney in May 2014.[32] The ad buy was worth approximately $350,000.[32]

Campaign contributions

John Tierney

Candidates for Congress were required to file up to seven main reports with the Federal Election Commission during the 2014 elections season. Below are Tierney’s reports.[33]

John F. Tierney (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
ReportDate FiledBeginning BalanceTotal Contributions
for Reporting Period		ExpendituresCash on Hand
April Quarterly[34]April 15, 2013$22,170.06$264,135.36$(60,416.24)$373,413.97
July Quarterly[35]July 16, 2013$225,889.18$214,317.05$(63,981.70)$376,224.53
October Quarterly[36]October 14, 2013$376,224.53$251,259.49$(66,328.56)$561,155.46
Year-end[37]January 31, 2014$561,155$228,408$(80,622)$708,940
April Quarterly[38]April 15, 2014$708,940$348,386$(80,608)$976,718
Running totals
$1,306,505.9$(351,956.5)

Seth Moulton

Marisa DeFranco

Marisa DeFranco (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
ReportDate FiledBeginning BalanceTotal Contributions
for Reporting Period		ExpendituresCash on Hand
October Quarterly[42]October 15, 2013$0$24,866$(2,037)$22,828
Year End[43]January 31, 2014$22,828$19,247$(7,984)$34,090
April Quarterly[44]April 15, 2014$34,090$22,193$(24,823)$31,460
Running totals
$66,306$(34,844)

John Devine

John Devine (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
ReportDate FiledBeginning BalanceTotal Contributions
for Reporting Period		ExpendituresCash on Hand
April Quarterly[45]April 15, 2014$0$40$(0)$40
Running totals
$40$(0)

Richard Tisei

Richard Tisei (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
ReportDate FiledBeginning BalanceTotal Contributions
for Reporting Period		ExpendituresCash on Hand
April Quarterly[46]April 15, 2013$0$17,510$(10,841)$7,606
July Quarterly[47]July 15, 2013$7,606$119$(6,097)$1,628
October Quarterly[48]October 15, 2014$1,628$158$(0)$1,786
Year End[49]January 31, 2014$1,786$434,768$(42,549)$394,005
April Quarterly[50]April 15, 2014$394,005$301,343$(126,093)$569,256
Running totals
$753,898$(185,580)

District history

Candidate ballot access
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Find detailed information on ballot access requirements in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

2012

The 6th District of Massachusetts held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012, in which incumbent John Tierney (D) won re-election. He defeated Richard Tisei (R) and Daniel Fishman (L).[51]

U.S. House, Massachusetts District 6 General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Tierney Incumbent 46.4% 180,942
     Republican Richard Tisei 45.3% 176,612
     Libertarian Daniel Fishman 4.3% 16,739
     N/A All Others 0.1% 514
     N/A Blank Votes 3.9% 15,045
Total Votes 389,852
Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State "Return of Votes"

2010

On November 2, 2010, John Tierney won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Bill Hudak (R) in the general election.[52]

U.S. House, Massachusetts District 6 General Election, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Tierney incumbent 56.8% 142,732
     Republican Bill Hudak 43% 107,930
     N/A Write-in 0.2% 419
Total Votes 251,081

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Cook Political Report, "2014 HOUSE RACE RATINGS FOR June 26, 2014," accessed August 7, 2014
  2. ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2014 House Races," accessed August 7, 2014
  3. ↑ Fairvote, "FairVote Releases Projections for the 2014 Congressional Elections," accessed August 7, 2014
  4. ↑ WGHB, "6th District Showdown Between Seth Moulton And Richard Tisei Blurs Party Lines," accessed October 21, 2014
  5. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Report of Receipts and Disbursements," accessed October 2, 2014
  6. ↑ Gloucester Times, "Tisei gets national Young Guns endorsement," accessed April 15, 2014 (dead link)
  7. ↑ NRCC, "Young Guns 2012," July 2014
  8. ↑ NCSL, "State Primary Election Types," accessed October 3, 2024
  9. ↑ Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "How to Vote in a Primary," accessed October 3, 2024
  10. ↑ Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Website, "Voter Registration Information," accessed January 3, 2014
  11. ↑ United States Census Bureau, "Counties by Congressional Districts," accessed June 8, 2016
  12. ↑ John Devine for Congress, "Home," accessed February 17, 2014
  13. ↑ Red Mass Group, "Marisa DeFranco to run for Congress in MA 6th District," accessed February 26, 2014
  14. ↑ Salem News, "Challengers eye Democratic nomination," accessed March 3, 2014 (dead link)
  15. ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of State Elections, "Democratic Primary Candidates," accessed June 5, 2014
  16. ↑ Tewksbury Advocate, "Tisei renews Congressional battle," accessed February 3, 2014
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 Politico, "5 House primaries to watch," accessed August 8, 2013
  18. ↑ Clerk of the U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 504," accessed October 31, 2013
  19. ↑ Buzzfeed, "Government Shutdown: How We Got Here," accessed October 1, 2013
  20. ↑ Clerk of the U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 504," accessed October 31, 2013
  21. ↑ The Washington Post, "Reid, McConnell propose bipartisan Senate bill to end shutdown, extend borrowing," accessed October 16, 2013
  22. ↑ U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 550," accessed October 31, 2013
  23. ↑ Boston Globe, "Officials appear to misuse Mass. campaign funds," accessed July 29, 2014
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 Hamilton Wenham Patch, "Tisei Spurns GOP Convention," accessed March 24, 2014
  25. ↑ Glouster Times, "Tisei skips GOP convention over gay rights stand," accessed March 24, 2014 (dead link)
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Boston Globe, "Richard Tisei to boycott GOP convention," accessed March 24, 2014
  27. ↑ Boston Globe, "US Chamber of Commerce launches ad backing Richard Tisei," accessed July 30, 2014
  28. ↑ Washington Post, "LGBT group to back two gay Republicans for Congress," accessed February 26, 2014
  29. ↑ Roll Call, "House Republicans Put 36 Recruits ‘On the Radar’" accessed November 21, 2013
  30. ↑ NRCC Young Guns, "List," accessed March 20, 2014
  31. ↑ Youtube, "Tisei's Take on Leadership," accessed July 30, 2014
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 Boston Globe, "US Chamber of Commerce launches ad backing Richard Tisei," accessed July 30, 2014
  33. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John F. Tierney Summary Report," accessed July 25, 2013
  34. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John F. Tierney April Quarterly," accessed July 25, 2013
  35. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John F. Tierney July Quarterly," accessed July 25, 2013
  36. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "John F. Tierney October Quarterly," accessed October 23, 2013
  37. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Year End Report," accessed February 17, 2014
  38. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed April 21, 2014
  39. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "October Quarterly," accessed May 15, 2014
  40. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Year End," accessed May 15, 2014
  41. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed May 12, 2014
  42. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "October Quarterly," accessed March 4, 2014
  43. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Year End Report," accessed March 4, 2014
  44. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed May 12, 2014
  45. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed May 15, 2014
  46. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed March 4, 2014
  47. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "July Quarterly," accessed March 4, 2014
  48. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "October Quarterly," accessed March 4, 2014
  49. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Year End Report," accessed March 4, 2014
  50. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "April Quarterly," accessed May 12, 2014
  51. ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, Massachusetts"
  52. ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013
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