Seth Moulton Misleads on Voting Record During First Senate Primary Debate
July 8, 2026
CHICOPEE, Mass. – During the first primary debate of the Massachusetts Senate race, Congressman Seth Moulton lied multiple times on his voting record, his private-equity investments, and Senator Markey’s progressive leadership.
December 2025 Trump Defense Budget
LIE: Congressman Moulton claims he voted against Donald Trump’s defense budget
MOULTON: “Senator, with all due respect, you may not remember this, but I voted against that bill. I voted against it, and I proposed an amendment for the largest cut to that bill in history.”
FACT: Seth Moulton voted for Trump’s trillion dollar Defense Department budget in December and put out a statement defending that vote.
Private equity investments and mutual funds are not the same thing.
LIE: Moulton claimed Senator Markey has “invested in 14 companies that appear before his committee,” and “refused to disclose his family's finances.”
FACT: Senator Markey invests in mutual funds, which are public and available to all. “There's a big difference between that and what Congressman Moulton has been doing,” said Senator Markey. “He has been given opportunities by private equity to invest in companies that appear before his Armed Services Committee. No one watching this debate has been given that opportunity. That is plain wrong.”
Congressman Moulton was recruited to invest in companies, such as Oura, Divergent Technologies, and WebAI only because of his seat on the House Armed Services Committee, and his long-standing relationships with private equity.
Senator Markey was the first in this race to release his tax returns and his personal financial disclosure, both of which Congressman Moulton filed late and under pressure.
Seth missed the bipartisan housing bill last month
LIE: Congressman Moulton claims he voted for Senator Elizabeth Warren’s bi-partisan housing bill.
MOULTON: “Senator, again, just to set the record straight, I voted for the housing bill when it came up in May.”
FACT: The House of Representatives voted on Senator Warren’s housing bill in June. Congressman Moulton skipped that vote.
First to call for abolishing ICE
LIE: Congressman Moulton claimed he was the first to call for abolishing ICE.
MOULTON: “No, and Senator, I'm glad that you've come around to those positions – because I was the first in this race to call for the abolition of ICE”
FACT: Ed Markey voted against the original creation of ICE in 2002 and called for abolishing ICE more than five years before Moulton did.
Endorsements in the race
LIE: Congressman Moulton said that a long list of endorsements from his congressional district happened before he entered the race.
MOULTON: “We all know that all these endorsements – you racked them up before I even got in the race. So, I mean, it's not about the establishment politician endorsements.” (Moulton announced October 15, 2025)
FACT: Senator Markey’s endorsements that came after Moulton entered the race in October of 2025 is long and includes:
- Mayor of Salem, Dominick Pangallo (December ‘25)
- Mayor of Lynn, Jared Nicholson (December ‘25)
- Rep. Manny Cruz (October ‘25)
- Rep. Sean Reid (Late October ‘25)
- Rep. David Robertson (May‘26)
- State Senator, Brendan Crighton (March ‘26)
- State Senator, Cindy Friedman (June ‘26)
The following list of endorsements took place before Mouton entered the race:
- Rep. Jennifer Armini (6-16 ‘25)
- Rep. Dan Cahill (6-12 ‘25)
- Rep. Ken Gordon (6-12 ‘25)
- Rep. Kristin Kassner (6-18 ‘25)
- Rep. Tram Nguyen (6-12 ‘25)
- Rep. Adrianne Ramos (6-16 ‘25)
- Rep. Dawne Shand (December ‘25)
- Rep. Tom Walsh (October ‘25)
- State Senator Joan Lovely (June ‘25)
Support for Transgender Youth
LIE: Congressman Moulton attempted to re-write history and insist he didn’t use transgender kids for his own political gain.
MOULTON: “I stand with you because I've always stood with you.”
FACT: After the 2024 election, Moulton told The New York Times: “I have two little girls, I don’t want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete…,” presenting the issue as something Democrats are “supposed to be afraid” to say [4]. These comments came at a time when Transgender Americans were under attack across the country.
Rather than standing up for a vulnerable community at a moment of heightened danger, Moulton chose to echo a Republican talking point that dehumanizes trans kids and fuels fear. His comments were widely criticized by advocates, who argued that they perpetuated harmful stereotypes, ignored the realities of youth sports, and further legitimized an already hostile political climate toward transgender people.
What followed was not an immediate course correction or expression of empathy, but nearly a year of doubling down, deflecting criticism, and refusing to apologize—even as advocates, parents of transgender children, and LGBTQ+ leaders repeatedly raised concerns about the harm his words caused. Only after launching his Senate campaign did Moulton finally reverse course, raising serious questions about whether his shift reflects genuine reflection or political calculation.
TIMELINE:
Nov. 7, 2024
Moulton told The New York Times: “I have two little girls, I don’t want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete…,” presenting the issue as something Democrats are “supposed to be afraid” [5].
Nov. 10, 2024
Just days after his initial comments, Moulton doubled down during a CNN interview, saying he "stand[s] by" his position and arguing that Democrats are "out of touch with the majority of Americans" on transgender athletes. He dismissed criticism from LGBTQ advocates and fellow Democrats as efforts to "shame" and "cancel" dissenting viewpoints, repeatedly portraying himself as a victim of ideological intolerance rather than acknowledging concerns about the harm his remarks had caused. He also continued to defend restrictions on transgender participation in competitive sports, framing the issue as a debate about fairness and safety rather than the rights and inclusion of transgender youth [10].
Nov. 11, 2024
Amid widespread backlash and condemnation, Moulton refused to apologize. Instead, he doubled down in a Facebook post, claiming that the reaction to his comments about transgender athletes “has only served to reinforce my original point,” arguing that “Democrats spend way too much time trying not to offend anyone rather than being brutally honest about the challenges many Americans face” [5].
Nov. 20, 2024
Less than two weeks after his original remarks, Moulton once again refused to walk them back, using a NewsNation interview to argue that Democrats had become intolerant of dissenting views on transgender issues. He continued to defend restrictions on transgender participation in sports, claimed the backlash he faced proved his point, and repeatedly characterized critics as enforcing ideological "litmus tests" rather than engaging in honest debate. While voicing support for transgender rights in some contexts, Moulton remained unapologetic and continued to frame concerns about transgender athletes as a legitimate political issue Democrats needed to embrace rather than reject [11].
Nov. 27, 2024
Congressman Moulton met with parents of LGBTQ and transgender children, but the exchange did little to ease their concerns. As Nina Selvaggio, executive director of Greater Boston PFLAG, recounted afterward: “During our meeting, I shared the collective anxiety and fear gripping our community. Yet Rep. Moulton made it clear that he did not regret his statements and offered no apology” [6].
Jan. 29, 2025
When confronted at a subsequent town hall, Moulton again refused to apologize or walk back his remarks. Instead, he said he was proud to be “brutally honest” and accused those calling for an apology of attempting to “cancel” him [7] [8].
Nov. 4, 2025
Moulton did not apologize until November 2025 — a full year after his original remarks — a period in which he repeatedly dismissed calls to walk them back and instead doubled down. His apology came only after announcing his Senate campaign, suggesting that his reversal was driven less by genuine reflection than by political convenience and a recognition that his stance was out of step with Massachusetts Democratic primary voters [5]
April. 9th 2026
Moulton was interviewed by a reporter from The Washington Post on the steps of the Capitol and asked whether he still stood by his comments about young transgender athletes. His response was unequivocal: “Of course I stand by it.” [9] At no point did he reference his earlier apology or express any regret. Instead, he emphatically reaffirmed the original statement.
[1]- https://sethmoulton.com/issue/equality-for-every-american/
[3]- https://rollcall.com/2019/05/17/these-8-republicans-voted-for-the-equality-act/
[4]- https://www.wbur.org/news/2024/11/08/backlash-brews-over-moultons-comments-on-trans-athletes
[5] - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/16/us/politics/democrats-transgender-rights-moulton.html
[9] - https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=965124222646392
[10] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_kSkS4wAnQ
[11] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTKTL3RL0To
