Massachusetts's 9th congressional district special election of 2001 was held on October 16, 2001 to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Representative Joe Moakley

Joe Moakley

John Joseph "Joe" Moakley was a Democratic congressman from the Ninth District of Massachusetts, a seat held two years earlier by Speaker John William McCormack. Moakley was the last chairman of the U.S...

. Democratic State Senator

Massachusetts Senate

The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the state...

 Stephen Lynch

Stephen Lynch (politician)

Stephen F. Lynch is the U.S. representative for . He is a member of the Democratic Party who has served since 2001. Lynch was previously an ironworker and lawyer, and served in both chambers of the Massachusetts General Court....

 won the election; defeating six candidates in the Democratic primary and three in the general election.

Primaries

The Democratic and Republican primaries were held on September 11, 2001. The election was overshadowed by the September 11 attacks, which occurred shortly after polls opened.

Stephen Lynch defeated State Senators Cheryl Jacques

Cheryl Jacques

Cheryl Ann Jacques is a United States politician who, beginning in January 2004, served for 11 months as president of the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender, or LGBT, advocacy organization...

, Brian A. Joyce

Brian A. Joyce

Brian A. Joyce is a Massachusetts State Senator and a member of the Democratic Party. He represents the Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth district, which includes Avon, Braintree, Canton, East Bridgewater, Easton, Milton, Randolph, Sharon, Stoughton, and West Bridgewater, and is currently serving his...

, and Marc Pacheco, former federal prosecutor William F. Sinnott, housing advocate John E. Taylor, and activist William A. Ferguson, Jr. for the Democratic nomination.

State Senator Jo Ann Sprague

Jo Ann Sprague

Jo Ann Sprague is a former Massachusetts State Representative and State Senator from Walpole. In the Massachusetts Senate she represented the Norfolk, Bristol, and Plymouth district, but moved in 2003 to the Bristol and Norfolk district. Previously she was a State Representative from the 9th...

 defeated State Republican Committeeman William D. McKinney for the Republican nomination.

General election

Stephen F. Lynch won the general election. He defeated his nearest competitor, Jo Ann Sprague, by over 22,000 votes.