Massachusetts Senate Voter Guide: Markey, Deaton, Ayyadurai and Tache on Health Care and Housing
Four candidates are on the ballot for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026: Democratic Sen. Ed Markey, who is seeking a third full term; Republican John Deaton, an attorney and Marine Corps veteran; independent Shiva Ayyadurai, a scientist and businessman; and Joe Tache, a Boston community organizer who appears on the ballot under the designation "Socialism and Liberation."
The Digital Free Press voter guide video compares the four candidates on health care and housing. Here is where each one stands, based on the video, the candidates' own campaign platforms, Markey's Senate record, the race's only debate and Massachusetts reporting.
Why Health Care and Housing Are Issues
Massachusetts is one of the most expensive states in the country, and a housing shortage has pushed up prices, NPR reported this month. Voters this year will also decide a statewide ballot question that would require cities and towns to allow smaller homes on smaller lots.
Health care costs were a main topic at the race's only debate, between Markey and Deaton on WBZ-TV on Oct. 13. Both men blamed large insurance companies for high costs, but they split on Medicare for All, according to NBC Boston and The New Bedford Light.
Ed Markey (Democrat, Incumbent)
Markey has served in the U.S. Senate since 2013. He won the Sept. 1 Democratic primary over Rep. Seth Moulton with 64.9% of the vote.
On health care, the video says Markey supports Medicare for All and expanding Medicare to cover dental, vision and hearing. His campaign website says he is "advancing a national Medicare for All program" and lists him as the lead sponsor of the State-Based Universal Health Care Act of 2025 (S. 2286) and an original co-sponsor of the Medicare for All Act (S. 1506) and the Medicare Dental, Hearing, and Vision Expansion Act of 2025 (S. 939). "We're not running a healthcare system, we're running a sick care system," Markey said at the debate. "We have to have a system that finally, once and for all, reaches everyone in our nation."
On housing, the video says Markey favors federal investment in affordable homes, rental assistance and eviction prevention. His campaign website says he wants to make housing more affordable "by investing in the construction and preservation of affordable homes, expanding rental assistance, supporting first-generation homebuyers, and strengthening programs that prevent evictions and reduce homelessness." It lists him as an original co-sponsor of the Housing for All Act of 2025 (S. 1477) and the American Housing and Economic Mobility Act of 2025 (S. 934).
John Deaton (Republican)
Deaton was the Republican nominee against Sen. Elizabeth Warren in 2024 and ran unopposed in this year's Republican primary. He is known for filing a pro bono brief on behalf of investors in the Securities and Exchange Commission's case over the cryptocurrency XRP, and he has said he grew up in Section 8 housing, according to the Waltham Times.
On health care, the video says Deaton would use antitrust laws to break up big insurers and pharmacy benefit managers. His campaign website says three "vertically integrated insurance conglomerates now control over 90% of American healthcare" and that he will "fight to break up these vertically integrated insurers and break up the PBM monopoly." He also calls for lower prescription drug prices, more telehealth and clear disclosure of cash prices versus insurance prices, which he says "can be done without growing Washington's bureaucracy or raising taxes." At the debate, Deaton said, "If you give me one thing to work on when I go to Washington, it will be health care," and argued that Medicare for All lacks support among most Senate Democrats, NBC Boston reported.
On housing, the video says Deaton would build 5 million homes in five years by opening public land and easing permitting. The Waltham Times reported in September that Deaton has proposed building 5 million new homes nationwide over five years and supports expanding the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit in Massachusetts. His campaign website calls for "permitting reform that sets real deadlines for local and state approval," opposes "green-energy mandates" that he says raise costs for buyers and renters, and supports exploring real estate tokenization so more families can buy fractional stakes in property.
Shiva Ayyadurai (Independent)
Ayyadurai holds four degrees from MIT, including a doctorate, and is the founder and CEO of the biotechnology company CytoSolve, according to the Brookline Record. He has run for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts before, in 2020 and 2024. Ayyadurai is the plaintiff in a 2026 federal lawsuit against Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin and Justice Department officials over the handling of digital ballot images; on Aug. 18, a federal judge denied his request for a preliminary injunction and dismissed his claim against Galvin, court records show.
On health care, the video says Ayyadurai favors preventive and integrative care, nutrition and stronger food labeling. His campaign platform calls for a shift "from 'sick-care' to preventive and integrative medicine, nutrition, and systems biology," for protecting "medical freedom," and for banning "poisons in food and agriculture" and enforcing "honest labeling."
On housing, the video says Ayyadurai has no published housing position in the sources it reviewed. His campaign platform does not include a separate housing plan. It says cutting taxes for families and small businesses would help people "afford clean food, safe housing, and healthcare."
Joe Tache (Socialism and Liberation)
Tache is a Boston youth worker and community organizer who graduated from Northeastern University in 2018 and joined the Party for Socialism and Liberation the same year, according to the Brookline Record. He announced his campaign on Nov. 1, 2025.
On health care, the video says Tache believes the country has the means to meet every person's needs, including health care. In a September interview with WAMC, Tache said, "we don't need to have private health insurance companies," and said he supports "a universal single-payer health plan, where everybody has the right to see a doctor." His campaign website says the campaign wants to "guarantee healthcare."
On housing, the video uses the same line for Tache. His campaign website says the campaign wants to "cap rents," and his program says "it is harder and harder to access dignified housing even though there are more empty homes on the market than homeless people in this country." The program proposes taking the nation's top 100 corporations into public ownership and a 100% tax on assets above $10 million to pay for housing, health care and other public services.
Where to Follow the Candidates
Ed Markey: @EdMarkey on X and @edmarkey on Instagram. John Deaton: @JohnEDeaton1 and @DeatonForSenate on X and @johndeaton4senate on Instagram. Shiva Ayyadurai: @va_shiva on X and Instagram. Joe Tache: @tache4ma on X and Instagram.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. This guide is for information only; The Digital Free Press does not endorse any candidate.
Yossi Schmidt, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Digital Free Press
Hold Everyone Accountable.
Sources: Brookline Record, "Joe Tache seeks Massachusetts Senate seat on socialist platform" (Oct. 21, 2026): https://brooklinerecord.com/articles/joe-tache-seeks-u-s-senate-on-socialist-platform-mvh5d3cf ; Brookline Record, "Shiva Ayyadurai seeks Massachusetts Senate seat as an independent" (Oct. 21, 2026): https://brooklinerecord.com/articles/shiva-ayyadurai-runs-as-independent-for-u-s-senate-mvh5u82g ; NBC Boston, "Ed Markey, John Deaton clash in Massachusetts Senate debate" (Oct. 14, 2026): https://www.nbcboston.com/news/politics/markey-and-deaton-clash-on-debate-stage-as-election-day-nears/4030732/ ; The New Bedford Light, "Deaton and Markey clash over Trump, voting record in first and only debate" (Oct. 14, 2026): https://newbedfordlight.org/deaton-and-markey-clash-over-trump-voting-record-in-first-and-only-debate/ ; Waltham Times, "Deaton stresses healthcare shakeup, ICE reform ahead of November election" (Sept. 29, 2026): https://walthamtimes.org/2026/09/29/deaton-stresses-healthcare-shakeup-ice-reform-ahead-of-november-election/ ; WAMC, "Socialist U.S. Senate candidate in Mass. says he's running to confront crisis of capitalism" (Sept. 3, 2026): https://www.wamc.org/news/2026-09-03/socialist-ma-u-s-senate-candidate-says-hes-running-to-confront-crisis-of-capitalism ; NPR, "Voters here will decide whether to force cities to build cheaper, smaller homes" (Oct. 13, 2026): https://www.npr.org/2026/10/13/nx-s1-5979839/massachusetts-starter-homes-ballot-affordability ; U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Ayyadurai v. Galvin et al., No. 1:26-cv-13329, order of Aug. 18, 2026: https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/USCOURTS-mad-1_26-cv-13329/USCOURTS-mad-1_26-cv-13329-0 ; Wikipedia, 2026 United States Senate election in Massachusetts: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_United_States_Senate_election_in_Massachusetts ; Ed Markey campaign, Affordable Care for All: https://www.edmarkey.com/issues-priorities/affordable-care-for-all/ ; Ed Markey campaign, Pathways to Opportunity: https://www.edmarkey.com/issues-priorities/pathways-to-opportunity/ ; John Deaton campaign, Issues: https://www.johndeatonforsenate.com/issues ; Shiva Ayyadurai campaign, Platform: https://shiva4senate.com/platform/ ; Joe Tache campaign: https://www.tache4ma.com/ and Our Program: https://www.tache4ma.com/our-program
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