Fresh from a resounding victory over two fellow Democrats in Tuesday’s primary, United States Representative Seth W. Moulton said electrifying the commuter rail line running through Lynn is a top 2021 priority.
A long-time advocate for fast-rail transportation, the Salem resident said electrification is a vital part of upgraded regional transportation for the North Shore.
Unofficial primary election results gave Moulton 78 percent of the vote with Topsfield Democrat Jamie Belsito getting 12 percent of Tuesday’s vote and Angus McQuilken of Topsfield receiving 9.6 percent.
Moulton faces Billerica Republican John Paul Moran, self-described founder of the nonprofit Grand Opportunity USA, in the Nov. 3 final election.
Elected to represent the Sixth Congressional District’s 39 communities after unseating United States Representative John F. Tierney in the 2014 Democratic primary, Moulton is casting a wary eye on the presidential election and the uphill battle to wrest control of the United States Senate from Republicans.
“I’ve always said Trump will be harder to beat than people think. He is trying to make the case that he is a law and order candidate in the face of chaos. That’s absurd,” Moulton said in a Wednesday interview.
Moulton isn’t surprised by United States Senator Edward J. Markey’s clear primary win over United States Representative Joseph P. Kennedy III.
“(Markey’s) win spoke to the frustration of young people who saw in Senator Markey an agitator. He’s challenged the status quo to get things done,” Moulton said.
Moulton crisscrossed the country campaigning to get veterans elected to Congress in 2018 and said Democrats must “make sure people not in the party have a path into it.”
Moulton said Congress must help deliver “massive relief” to Americans left unemployed and facing eviction or foreclosure due to coronavirus’ blow to the economy.
He counts additional production at the River Works plant in the $1.2 billion in economic assistance directed to Lynn during his six years in office. He wants General Electric to meet its workforce enhancement goals by hiring from Lynn, “especially among women and people of color.”
“Momentum matters and we’ve got some momentum going in Lynn, and the ball is really rolling on regional rail,” said Moulton.
His strong primary win comes after two years that saw him criticized for challenging Nancy Pelosi’s bid for the U.S. House speakership and his brief presidential run.
“It’s humbling after all the flak I’ve gotten to see voters have my back,” he said.
