Last Tuesday’s historic midterms brought, and continue to bring, sweeping reform across the country as voters went to the polls to cast ballots from their local city councilors all the way up to the United States Senate. Bay Staters, too, went to the polls to elect and re-elect their elected officials on Tuesday. With watershed communities electing a new Member of Congress, new State Senator, and three new members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, we wanted to take a moment to introduce you to the newest representatives and advocates for the Ipswich River.
Massachusetts 6th Congressional District – Congressman-Elect Dan Koh
Across the North Shore and Merrimack Valley, voters overwhelmingly elected Dan Koh to the 6th Congressional District to succeed Congressman Seth Moulton. Dan Koh is a former 2018 Congressional Candidate, Andover Selectboard Member, Chief of Staff to both Mayor Marty Walsh and Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh, and Senior Advisor to President Biden.
Fifth Middlesex District – State Senator-Elect Katie Lipper-Garabedian
After State Senator Jason Lewis announced his retirement, the communities of Reading, Wakefield, Stoneham, Melrose, and Malden, elected current State Representative Katie Lipper-Garabedian of Melrose in an uncontested general election race to succeed Senator Lewis. Senator-Elect Lipper-Garabedian has represented the 32nd Middlesex District in the Massachusetts House of Representatives since 2020, having previously served as General Counsel in the Massachusetts Executive Office of Education.
20th Middlesex District – Joe Markey
After Minority Leader Representative Brad Jones announced his retirement, the communities of Lynnfield, North Reading, and parts of the towns of Reading and Middleton elected Joe Markey to fill the seat. Serving as Lynnfield Town Moderator since 2019, Joe is also a founder and attorney at Markey Law Partners in Boston. Of all of the Watershed community races, this seat was the only one to flip parties, with Brad Jones serving as a Republican and Joe Markey running as a Democrat.
18th Essex District – State Representative-Elect Connor Murray
After State Representative Tram Nguyen vacated her seat to run for Congress, Connor Murray was elected to represent the communities of Tewksbury, Andover, North Andover, and part of Boxford. A relative newcomer to politics, Connor ran to address affordability in his community.
We offer our sincerest congratulations to everyone who won and ran, and cannot wait to get to work with all of our legislators, veterans and freshmen alike, to protect our river and our watershed.