U.S. Senator Ed Markey toured Greenfield in June with Mayor Roxann Wedegartner, who endorsed him for re-election. Markey defeated Republican challenger Kevin O’Connor on Tuesday.
U.S. Senator Ed Markey toured Greenfield in June with Mayor Roxann Wedegartner, who endorsed him for re-election. Markey defeated Republican challenger Kevin O’Connor on Tuesday. Credit: STAFF FILE PHOTO/MAX MARCUS

BOSTON — Democratic U.S. Sen. Edward Markey, a Massachusetts fixture in Congress since the mid-1970s, has won re-election.

Markey easily defeated Republican challenger Kevin O’Connor to win a third term. The 74-year-old Markey has represented the state in Washington for decades — first in the House, starting in 1976, before winning John Kerry’s former Senate seat in 2013. After completing Kerry’s term, he won re-election in 2014.

Markey’s bigger test came earlier this year, when he overcame a hard-fought primary challenge from fellow Democrat Joe Kennedy III. The grandson of Robert F. Kennedy essentially gave up his U.S. House seat to try to unseat Markey.