Massachusetts Women Likely to Maintain, and Could Expand, Congressional Representation

CAWP Staff


Congressional primaries were held on Tuesday in Massachusetts. Full context about women in the 2020 elections, including candidate lists, summaries, results from previous primaries, and historical comparisons, are available via the Center for American Women and Politics’ Election Watch page.

Among the most notable results for women:

  • All 3 (3D) incumbent women will advance to the general election for the U.S. House in Massachusetts.
    • Both Representatives Ayanna Pressley (D) and Lori Trahan (D) were unopposed in their primary contests and will have no opponents in the general election, ensuring they will be re-elected in November.
    • Representative Katherine Clark (D) was unopposed in her primary election and will face Caroline Colarusso (R) – who was also unopposed in the Republican primary – in an all-woman contest in November. This contest is currently rated as “Solid Democratic” by Cook Political Report.  

U.S. Senate

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D) is the only woman to ever serve in the U.S. Senate from Massachusetts. She has served in the U.S. Senate since 2013 and is not up for re-election this year.

No women ran to challenge incumbent Senator Ed Markey (D) in Massachusetts this year.


U.S. House

Women are currently 3 (3D) of 9 members of the Massachusetts delegation to the U.S. House (33.3%).

Women are 7 (3D, 4R) of 14 (50%) major-party nominees for U.S. House in Massachusetts, including 3 of 9 (33.3%) Democrats and 4 of 5 (80%) Republicans. This year, 5 (5D) women candidates were unsuccessful in their primary bids for the U.S. House.

  • All 3 (3D) incumbent women will advance to the general election for the U.S. House in Massachusetts.
    • Both Representatives Ayanna Pressley (D) and Lori Trahan (D) were unopposed in their primary contests and will have no opponents in the general election, ensuring they will be re-elected in November.
    • Representative Katherine Clark (D) was unopposed in her primary election and will face Caroline Colarusso (R) – who was also unopposed in the Republican primary – in an all-woman contest in November. This contest is currently rated as “Solid Democratic” by Cook Political Report.  
  • Julie Hall (R) won the Republican nomination for the open U.S. House seat in Massachusetts’ 4th congressional district. This general election contest is currently rated as “Solid Democratic” by Cook Political Report.
  • 3 (3R) women will run as challengers to incumbents in November.
    • Tracy Lovvorn (R) was unopposed in the Republican primary to challenge incumbent Representative Jim McGovern in Massachusetts’ 2nd congressional district. This contest is currently rated as “Solid Democratic” by Cook Political Report. Lovvorn won the Republican nomination to challenge McGovern in the 2018 election, losing by 34 points.
    • Caroline Colarusso (R) was unopposed in the Republican primary to challenge incumbent Representative Katherine Clark in Massachusetts’ 5th congressional district. This contest is currently rated as “Solid Democratic” by Cook Political Report.
    • Helen Brady (R) was unopposed in the Republican primary to challenge incumbent Representative Bill Keating in Massachusetts’ 9th congressional district. This contest is currently rated as “Solid Democratic” by Cook Political Report.

Of the 7 (3D, 4R) women major-party nominees for the U.S. House from Massachusetts, 2 (1D, 1R) are women of color, including Representative Ayanna Pressley (D), who became the first Black woman in Congress from Massachusetts in 2019. Caroline Colarusso (R) identifies as Latina and white. No Latina has ever been elected to Congress from Massachusetts.

CAWP Staff