Dan Koh, backed by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, won a crowded Democratic primary for the House seat Seth Moulton is vacating in Massachusetts.
Page A15From§Eachthe midnight edition — 2 September 2026
Congressional Democrats survive progressive challenges, celebrate as party unity
Party unity is what happens when the progressive push hits a wall—and the wall wins. The Democratic establishment survives challenges from the left, and the press releases write it as unity. It's not divisiveness, they say; it's experience triumphing over extremism. The unity is not a coalition, it's a closing of ranks. The voters are said to have chosen stability, though what they really chose is the known quantity. The party line is clear: unity means the dissenters lost, and the committee celebrates by congratulating itself. The official statement reads as reassurance, but the receipts show the ladder stays vertical, and the progressive push stays in the waiting room. It's unity, if you define unity as the absence of change. Did I say that? I meant the celebration of continuity. The party is united, and the scoreboard says so.
“The party calls it unity when the progressives lose. It's not really unity—they just closed the door to new ideas and called it a victory. The only thing united is the career ladder.”
“This shows the party can come together after hard-fought primaries. The voters rejected divisiveness and chose stability. That's what unity means—well, unless you think dissent is healthy, which, I mean, it isn't if you want to win. Wait, did I say that out loud?”
The receipts
Stephen Lynch defeated progressive challenger Patrick Roath in the Massachusetts 8th Congressional District Democratic primary despite clashes over ICE.
Richard Neal defeated progressive challenger Jeromie Whalen in the Massachusetts 1st Congressional District primary, but the seniority debate rages on.
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front.