Congressman Bill Keating represents Cape Cod, the Islands and much of the South Coast in the U.S. House of Representatives. And for the first time in eight years, he has a primary challenger.
That's according to reporting by Tyler Jager of the Provincetown Independent.
Ahead of the primary election this September 1, CAI's Gilda Geist spoke with Tyler to learn more about the differences between Keating and Democratic primary challenger Craig Swallow.
Gilda Geist Who does Keating represent right now and how long has he been in office?
Tyler Jager Representative Keating represents the 9th Congressional District in Massachusetts, which includes most of the southeastern part of the state. So that's Cape Cod and the Islands, most of the South Coast including the New Bedford area and the South Shore up to Cohasset, roughly. He was first elected to Congress in 2010, and then he also represented the 8th District with a slightly different configuration, but that still included Cape Cod and much of the South Shore.
GG Who is Swallow, and why does he say he's running against Keating?
TJ Craig Swallow is a relative newcomer to politics. He's 40 years old. He's never held public office before. He's a New Bedford native who moved back there with his husband in 2023 and a former restaurant manager and high school history teacher. Swallow says he's running against Keating to be a more progressive representative in Congress, one that's more accessible to constituents and, in his view, [to] represent a more working-class and educator point of view.
GG What are some of the key differences between these two candidates?
TJ I would say the candidates diverge more in their resumes than in their policy positions. Swallow is from the New Bedford area, which has experienced redistricting a few times and not been represented as much in this district in terms of where the representative is from, whereas Keating lived in Quincy and then ran in a new district and moved to Bourne in 2012. Swallow is pitching himself in the mold of a progressive challenger to a House incumbent and emphasizes his support for Medicare for All. He criticized Representative Keating for his congressional stock trading and proposes banning it, as well as setting term limits for members of Congress and the Supreme Court. On Keating's end, he is touting his committee assignments. He's the top Democrat on the Subcommittee on Europe and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and also supports Medicare for All and has done so since 2019. They are, of course, very different in terms of the experience they have in politics. Keating was formerly the Norfolk County District Attorney as well as being a congressman.
GG In American elections, the incumbent almost always has a leg up over any challengers simply because of name recognition. How much of a shot does Swallow actually have?
TJ I think it's fair to say that Swallow has quite the uphill battle in this race. He's raised roughly $33,000 to Keating's $380,000, and Representative Keating, I believe, has even more cash on hand. And he [Swallow] said in our interview that he really sees himself in the mold of some other challengers this cycle to House incumbent Democrats in Massachusetts, such as Patrick Roath, who's challenging Representative Stephen Lynch in the 8th District. But some of those challengers have quite a bit more in terms of resources, endorsements and institutional support than Swallow has, although Swallow has been endorsed by Progressive Massachusetts, which has been involved in some of those races. But it will be tough to overcome those challenges when it comes to campaign funds and name recognition.
GG Who is the winner of this upcoming Democratic primary going to go up against in the general election?
TJ The winner of this primary will face Tyler MacAllister. He's the only declared Republican candidate and a former member of the Mattapoisett Select Board. And that general election is November 3.
