Vanna Howard Wins Full Term in 1st Middlesex
Howard secured a two-year state Senate term in the 1st Middlesex District, defeating Sam Meas and Joe Espinola.
Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Elections
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Democrat Vanna Howard won a full two-year term in the 1st Middlesex state Senate District with 58.4% of the vote, or 27,422 votes. Sam Meas finished second with 26.5%, and Joe Espinola finished third with 15.1%.
Why it matters
The result gives Howard a full term after winning a March special election to fill the seat left vacant by the death of state Sen. Ed Kennedy. Meas said whether he seeks office again depends in part on Howard's performance in the next term.
Howard received 58.4% of the vote, or 27,422 ballots, against 12,435 for Meas and 7,072 for Espinola. Howard is expected to be inaugurated in January, and whether Meas runs again remains open.
The players
Vanna Howard
Massachusetts Democrat who won the 1st Middlesex state Senate seat in a special election and then a full term.
Sam Meas
Former candidate who has now lost two races to Howard this year and said his future plans depend partly on her performance.
The details
Howard, who defeated former state Rep. Rodney Elliott in the September Democratic primary, won the midterm contest a second time over Meas after a three-way race in March. The 1st Middlesex Senate District includes Lowell, Dracut, Dunstable, Pepperell and Tyngsboro. With 100% of votes counted on Wednesday afternoon, the Associated Press reported the results.
Timeline
March 2026: Howard won the special election to fill the Senate seat left vacant by Ed Kennedy's death.
September 2026: Howard defeated Rodney Elliott in the Democratic primary.
November 4, 2026: Howard won the midterm election for a full two-year term.
January 2027: Howard's inauguration is scheduled.
Political Context
The November contest was a rematch of the March three-way special election that Howard also won over Meas and Espinola. Howard's repeat victory extends that result into a full two-year term for the Lowell-based district.
Residents of Lowell, Dracut, Dunstable, Pepperell and Tyngsboro now have Howard as their state senator for a full two-year term. Her inauguration in January will begin that period of representation for the district.
The takeaway
Howard's full-term win shows the district's voters chose the same candidate in both the March special election and the November midterm. Readers following the Massachusetts Senate can watch her January swearing-in and any signals from Meas about a future run.
What happens next
Howard's inauguration is scheduled for January 2027, when her full term begins.
Further reading
For more on how statewide races are contested, see Elections coverage.
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