| Ed Markey | |
|---|---|
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 7th district |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office November 2, 1976 |
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| Preceded by | Torbert Macdonald |
| Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from the 16th Middlesex district |
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| In office January 3, 1973 – November 2, 1976 |
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| Preceded by | William R. Callahan |
| Succeeded by | A. Joseph DeNucci |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 11, 1946 Malden, Massachusetts |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Susan Blumenthal |
| Residence | Malden, Massachusetts |
| Alma mater | Boston College |
| Occupation | Attorney |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Military service | |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1968–1973 |
| Unit | Reserves |
Edward John "Ed" Markey (born July 11, 1946) is the U.S. Representative for Massachusetts's 7th congressional district, serving since 1976. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes most of Boston's northern and western suburbs, such as Medford and Framingham. Markey is the Dean of both the Massachusetts and New England House delegations. He is the second longest-serving member of Congress from New England, behind Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont.
Markey was born and raised in Malden, Massachusetts. He graduated from Boston College and Boston College Law School. He worked as an attorney and served in the United States Army Reserve for five years before being elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives, where he served two terms as a state representative. In 1976 he won a crowded special election to succeed deceased incumbent Torbert Macdonald, and took office in November 1976.
In the U.S. House, Markey is a Progressive representative who has made energy policy his top priority. He sits on several energy committees and subcommittees, and is the former chairman of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.
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Markey was born and raised in Malden, the son of Christina M. (née Courtney) and John E. Markey, a milkman.[1][2] He was raised in an Irish Catholic family and educated at Immaculate Conception Grammar School and Malden Catholic High School. He graduated from Boston College in 1968 with a B.A. and from Boston College Law School in 1972 with a J.D.[3] After graduating, he worked as a lawyer in private practice, and served in the United States Army Reserve from 1968 to 1973.
He was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives, where he represented the 16th Middlesex district (Malden and Melrose) from 1973 to 1976.[3][4]
In May 1976, longtime 7th District Congressman Torbert Macdonald died in office. Markey won a crowded seven-way primary for the seat, which was tantamount to election in this heavily Democratic district. He has been re-elected 16 times with no substantive opposition and never won re-election with less than 62% of the vote.
Markey is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The National Journal generally gave him a "Composite Liberal" score in the mid-90s.[5] Since May 2005, he has been a contributing blogger at The Huffington Post.[6] In December 2007, Markey became the first US politician to utilize the medium of Second Life, through which he addressed the delegates of the UNFCCC in Bali as part of OneClimate's Virtual Bali event. It was estimated that the carbon dioxide saved in not flying Rep. Markey to Bali was around 5.5 tons. An example of his legislation is the Waxman-Markey bill (American Clean Energy and Security Act).
Markey's paramount issue is energy policy. He is the former chairman of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming and the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment.
Markey signed the Accuracy in Fuel Economy Standards Act which requires the Department of Transportation to use realistic and rational gas price assumptions as it calculates the maximum feasible fuel economy standards for the coming years as required by the energy bill passed by Congress last year.
Pressure from Markey prompted BP to provide a live underwater video feed showing the oil leaking out of a pipe in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010.[7] Rep. Markey also signed the Responsible Ownership of Public Lands Act in 2008 to compel Big Oil to utilize the 68 million acres (280,000 km2) onshore and offshore of public land that they are already leasing but not used to produce energy.
In March 2008, Markey signed the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Act to direct the President to seek to establish the International Renewable Energy Agency to expand the availability and generating capacity of renewable energy to markets around the world in order to increase economic opportunity, drive technological innovation, enhance regional and global security, raise living standards, and reduce global warming pollution.
Markey has been a longtime critic of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. He has been critical of the NRC's decision-making on the proposed Westinghouse AP1000 reactor design and the NRC response to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.[8][9]
He is also responsible for introducing legislation to change the duration of daylight saving time, starting in 2007, from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November.
In May 2011, he drafted the Do Not Track Kids Act of 2011 significantly increasing privacy controls over children online.[10]
Markey is known for his advocacy against torture and the practice of extraordinary rendition through the Torture Outsourcing Prevention Act.
In 2003, he began to call attention to the lack of security surrounding air cargo placed on commercial passenger planes, arguing that if all passenger baggage is screened for explosive devices, air cargo on the same plane should be as well. In 2007, he succeeded in getting a 100 percent air cargo screening requirement signed into law, which must be implemented within three years. Rep. Markey authored the mandate requiring all cargo on passenger planes to be screened by August 2010, in the law implementing the 9/11 Commission's recommendations. In light of the recent cargo scare, Rep. Markey continues to press that the requirement be enforced and plans to explore legislation mandating screening for air carriers that transport only cargo.
He was one of the 31 members of the House who voted not to count the electoral votes from Ohio in the 2004 Presidential election.[11]
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In 2004, Markey announced that he would run for John Kerry's seat in the United States Senate if Kerry were to be elected President of the United States. Although Kerry lost the election, Markey was easily reelected in 2004 over Republican Kenneth Chase and Independent Jim Hall. Markey was considered a leading contender to run in the January 19, 2010 special election to fill the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by the death of Edward M. Kennedy. On September 12, 2009, however, he announced his decision to remain in the U.S. House, and instead endorsed U.S. Representative Michael Capuano.[12] Markey is speculated to be one of the leading Democratic candidates to challenge Brown in the 2012 election.
| Year | Democrat | Votes | % | Republican | Votes | % | Third Party | Party | Votes | % | Third Party | Party | Votes | % | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Edward Markey | 162,126 | 77% | Richard Daly | 37,063 | 18% | James Murphy | Independent | 6,851 | 3% | Harry Chickles | Independent | 4,748 | 2% | |||||
| 1978 | Edward Markey | 145,615 | 85% | No candidate | James Murphy | Independent | 26,017 | 15% | |||||||||||
| 1980 | Edward Markey | 155,759 | 100% | ||||||||||||||||
| 1982 | Edward Markey | 151,305 | 78% | David Basile | 43,063 | 22% | |||||||||||||
| 1984 | Edward Markey | 167,211 | 71% | S. Lester Ralph | 66,930 | 29% | |||||||||||||
| 1986 | Edward Markey | 124,183 | 100% | No candidate | |||||||||||||||
| 1988 | Edward Markey | 188,647 | 100% | No candidate | |||||||||||||||
| 1990 | Edward Markey | 155,380 | 100% | No candidate | |||||||||||||||
| 1992 | Edward Markey | 174,837 | 62% | Stephen Sohn | 78,262 | 28% | Robert Antonelli | Independent | 28,421 | 10% | |||||||||
| 1994 | Edward Markey | 146,246 | 64% | Brad Bailey | 80,674 | 36% | |||||||||||||
| 1996 | Edward Markey | 177,053 | 70% | Patricia Long | 76,407 | 30% | |||||||||||||
| 1998 | Edward Markey | 137,178 | 71% | Patricia Long | 56,977 | 29% | |||||||||||||
| 2000 | Edward Markey | 211,543 | 99% | No candidate | Other | 2,814 | 1% | ||||||||||||
| 2002 | Edward Markey | 170,968 | 98% | No candidate | Other | 2,206 | 1% | Daniel Melnechuk | write-in | 863 | 0% | ||||||||
| 2004 | Edward Markey | 202,399 | 74% | Kenneth Chase | 60,334 | 22% | James Hall | Independent | 12,139 | 4% | |||||||||
| 2006 | Edward Markey | 171,902 | 98% | No candidate | Other | 2,889 | 2% | ||||||||||||
| 2008 | Edward Markey | 212,304 | 76% | John Cunningham | 81,802 | 24% | |||||||||||||
| 2010 | Edward Markey | 145,696 | 66% | Gerry Dembrowski | 73,467 | 33% |
Markey is married to Dr. Susan Blumenthal. He was one of several politicians who appeared in a cameo in the 2003 film Gods and Generals. He played an Irish Brigade officer.[15]
| United States House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Torbert H. Macdonald |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 7th congressional district November 2, 1976 – present |
Incumbent |
| United States order of precedence | ||
| Preceded by Henry Waxman D-California |
United States Representatives by seniority 9th |
Succeeded by Norm Dicks D-Washington |
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