SALEM — Don’t call him the Comeback Kid yet.
But five years after nine-term U.S. Rep. John F. Tierney was ousted from Congress by a then unknown 35-year-old Marine veteran, the former congressman is considering a rematch.
“I’m keeping an open mind,” Tierney told The Item Friday as he vacationed on Paradise Island in the Bahamas. “Voters in the district feel they are underrepresented and he’s burned more bridges in Washington than need repair in the nation.”
Tierney is talking about U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, the Salem Democrat who beat him in the 2014 primary 51 to 40 percent.
Ever since Moulton, who won re-election last year, threw his hat into the presidential ring, the number of Democrats lining up to take his place in Congress is growing. Tierney is the latest.
Tierney, 67, became vulnerable in 2010 when his wife, Patrice, was convicted on federal tax charges in connection with her brothers’ offshore betting operation.
Moulton, a Harvard Business School graduate, was the first Massachusetts Democrat in more than two decades to defeat a sitting congressman from his own party. Moulton went on to beat Republican Richard Tisei by a 14 percentage point margin. Moulton, 40, was re-elected to his third term last year.
Friends and former aides to Tierney told The Boston Globe they have been trying to persuade him to run again for the seat that he won in 1996 and eight times thereafter.
On Monday, Moulton became the 19th Democrat to toss his hat into the presidential ring. Former Vice President Joe Biden became number 20 on Thursday.
Democrats are lining up to take Moulton’s place in Congress.
Salem Mayor Kimberley Driscoll told The Item Wednesday she’s interested.
“If the seat were to become open, it’s fair to say it’s something I would take a hard look at,” she said.
Driscoll has been mayor since 2005.
A Moulton spokesman said the 6th District Congressman will seek reelection if he fails to win the presidency.
“Seth was elected in a primary and is not afraid of democracy,” said Matt Corridoni. “He’s still delivering for the district while campaigning.”
Moulton critics say he has been vulnerable ever since he led a movement to keep Nancy Pelosi from becoming House Speaker in January.
State Rep. Lori Ehrlich (D-Marblehead) said she is considering a run whether Moulton seeks reelection or not.
Former state Sen. Barbara L’Italien was already considering a run for the seat before Moulton set his sights on Pennsylvania Avenue. The Andover Democrat forfeited her spot in the Legislature to seek the congressional office vacated by U.S. Rep. Niki Tsongas last year.
Jamie Zahlaway Belsito, a former volunteer on Tisei’s campaign for Congress, said she’s taking her own shot at Moulton as a Democrat.
Tierney said he’s received a number of phone calls from supporters encouraging him to run.
“People have been complaining about this guy for a long time,” he said. “But now that he has further removed himself from the district, people are getting really irritated. I’ll finish up my vacation and take things from there.”
