Massachusetts Congressional Elections

Ending his campaign before it fully began, Matthew Maxwell Taylor Kennedy--the son of Robert F. Kennedy--on Monday announced he would not seek the congressional seat of the late Rep. John Joseph Moakley (D-Mass.). Although he had not formally declared his candidacy or filed federal election papers, the 36-year-old lawyer and philanthropist had made clear his interest in the rare Massachusetts congressional vacancy. Moakley died in May after 15 terms in Washington.

The late congressman loved a good fight, and the band of hopefuls vying to succeed him has been only too happy to oblige. In the days leading up to today's special primary election, the personal attacks flew among seven Democrats competing for the seat left vacant when Rep. John Joseph Moakley died of leukemia last spring. More refined campaigning came from two Republicans seeking the job held by the legendary Democrat, who represented South Boston on Capitol Hill for 27 years.

It may be a Grand Old Party, but in Massachusetts, top Republicans can't be having a lot of fun. Bad enough that Gov. Paul Cellucci is under fire for overspending on everything from extravagant junkets to the Big Dig, the $12.5-billion highway project that has made Bay State drivers crazy for almost 10 years. Bad enough that his presidential pick-to-click, Texas Gov. George W. Bush, was creamed in the primary here by Arizona Sen. John McCain.

They're healthy, and very, very wealthy. They're tall, painfully patrician and exceedingly well-educated. They are lawyers; for that matter, one-time prosecutors. They have high-achieving children and stunningly accomplished wives. They speak French--and Latin. Both boast summer homes, and fancy in-town addresses. They even own matching four-wheel drive vehicles. On paper, the similarities between the two candidates for the U.S.

A spending cap that was supposed to make the U.S. Senate race between John Kerry and Gov. William F. Weld a model for the nation fell apart amid a barrage of name-calling. Kerry, the Democratic incumbent who has already put $500,000 of his own money into the deadlocked race, announced he had arranged another $400,000 loan from a bank to offset what he perceived to be over-expenditures by Weld.

In a stunning upset, Oklahoma Rep. Mike Synar lost a Democratic runoff Tuesday to a little-known retired school principal, becoming the third incumbent this year to lose a congressional primary election. In Massachusetts' primary, W. Mitt Romney, son of former Michigan Gov. George Romney, easily won the GOP nomination to challenge Democratic Sen. Edward M. Kennedy. State Rep.