September 8, 2008 — The last time U.S. Sen. John Kerry faced opposition in the state's Democratic primary, Ronald Reagan was in the White House, Gov. Michael Dukakis was in the Statehouse and Ed O'Reilly hadn't yet dreamed of joining either.
Kerry was 41 at the time and fresh off a two-year stint as lieutenant governor when he defeated James Shannon in the 1984 primary in his first Senate campaign. Meanwhile, O'Reilly, who is challenging Kerry in this year's primary, was working as a defense lawyer and a volunteer firefighter in Gloucester.
Now, 24 years later, O'Reilly is looking to unseat Kerry in the Sept. 16 primary. The winner will go on to face Republican challenger Jeff Beatty in November's general election.
"John Kerry is stale," O'Reilly said in a recent interview with the Times. "He thinks he's entitled to his position. But I'm here to show him he's not. ... He represents what I now call the stagnant quo."
