The Barnstable Senior Center in Hyannis was packed Saturday when Ed Markey made his Cape Cod debut as a candidate for John Kerry’s US Senate seat. He was welcomed with standing ovations and significant endorsements.
In the 2012 election, State Senator Dan Wolf (Cape and Islands District) received more votes than any other State Senate candidate in MA and State Representative Sarah Peake 4th Barnstable District received more votes than any other state rep in MA in the 2012 election.
Senator Wolf and Rep Peake, along with newly elected 2nd Barnstable District Representative Brian Mannal announced their endorsement of Ed Markey for US Senate as he kicked off his grassroots campaign on Cape Cod.
Wolf and Peake were aggressive supporters of Elizabeth Warren, and the Cape and Islands Senate district had the highest voter turnout in the state for the 2012 elections.
State Rep Sarah Peake endorses Ed Markey for US Senate
MA State Senator endorses Ed Markey for US Senate
Cape Codders work for their candidates, and the Warren and Obama "Machines” are already in place here.
Many local Democratic leaders, Warren and Obama campaign leaders and campaign volunteers came out on a dreary day to meet Senate Candidate Markey and show their support. Not everyone was a Democrat, there were independent voters in the room, and yes, a few Republicans were spotted sharing in the applause and shaking Markey’s hand.
Markey shared his agenda that includes a woman’s right to choose, equal pay, getting guns off the streets, an LGBT agenda that is protected by our constitution,o clean energy, and policies that protect our poor, sick and elderly.
“Our health care system needs CPR,” said Markey.
C is for universal Coverage, he explained, P is for prevention, our system is designed for care and we need to prevent diseases, and R is for research, noting that the republicans are gutting research budgets at a time when we should be finding cures.
Markey voted to support the national healthcare bill while his primary opponent, Stephen Lynch, is one of the minority of Democrats who voted against it.
After he spoke, Markey moved around the room speaking to people individually, posing for photos, listening to personal stories, and answering questions.
Following the event in Hyannis, he traveled further down-Cape to Orleans to meet and greet a crowd at the Chocolate Sparrow.
At this point we haven’t heard from Stephen Lynch. An NECN report about the effort to collect signatures showed Lynch stopping by an event Saturday in his own congressional district, speaking to constituents who he has represented for years.
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So, during a campaign conference call with volunteers it came up that Daily Kos has been looking for Markey's website ... we've been told it's coming. To do it right, we were told, would normally take months. Soon. Promise!
In the mean time if you are in MA and would like to volunteer please sign up here, the future location of the website.
If you are not in MA and want to help, you can make a donation to the campaign on the same page, or you donate $3 per the Daily Kos.
We know that once the primary is said and done, Karl Rove and his ilk will be involved in this race.
And, as this diary is about Cape Codders supporting Markey, if you are in the Cape Cod area and want to volunteer, send us an email and we will put you in touch with the right people: barnstabledemocrats@gmail.com
Slideshow- Markey kicks off Cape Cod campaign: