A 19-year-old from Billerica has knocked off an eight-term incumbent state representative, flipping a Middlesex County legislative seat that one party had held since before he started grade school. Daniel Darris-O'Connor, a Billerica Democrat, defeated Republican Marc Lombardo in the race for the 22nd Middlesex District on Tuesday, according to unofficial town results. He's now set to become the youngest member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives.
According to The Lowell Sun, Darris-O'Connor received 8,968 votes to Lombardo's 8,530, a margin of 438 votes based on the unofficial tallies. The outlet noted that the win makes him one of the youngest people ever elected to the Massachusetts Legislature. As Boston 25 News reported, the 19-year-old's victory capped a midterm night that reshaped the balance of power in a longtime Republican stronghold.
An Eight-Term Lawmaker Loses His Seat
Lombardo had represented the 22nd Middlesex District since Darris-O'Connor was 4 years old, according to The Boston Globe, which reported that Darris-O'Connor unseated the eight-term Republican lawmaker on Tuesday. The newspaper reported that Darris-O'Connor will replace Lombardo representing the district going forward. This wasn't the teenager's first trip to the ballot box as a candidate — the same reporting notes he won a seat on Billerica's Select Board last year at 18 years old, starting that term before he'd even finished high school.
Per the same Globe account, Darris-O'Connor will turn 20 the day before he's sworn in at the State House in January, making him the youngest person in the Massachusetts House, though not the youngest the chamber has ever seen. The new legislative session begins January 6, 2027, according to New Boston Post, which is when he'll formally replace Lombardo in the district.
Campaign Centered on State Dollars and Costs
Darris-O'Connor said his campaign focused on bringing state funding back to Billerica and finding ways to ease costs squeezing residents, the Globe reported. Those priorities, paired with his Select Board experience, appear to have resonated in a town the Lowell Sun characterized as going blue in a race long held by Republicans.
New Boston Post framed the win as part of a broader night for Massachusetts Democrats, noting the victory came as the party made gains in the November 3 midterm elections. The Globe reported that the statewide Republican caucus, which had stood at 25 members, was expected to shrink by three seats following the election, according to party leadership.
Joining a Growing Bloc of Young Lawmakers
Darris-O'Connor won't be entering an entirely unfamiliar landscape when it comes to age at the State House. The Center for Youth Political Participation at Rutgers University found that 18 members aged 35 or under were elected to the Massachusetts House following the 2024 state legislative elections, and that the average age of House members in the 2025 session was 51.25 years old.
That same research identified Tara Thorn Hong, born in 2000, as the youngest House member during the 2025 session. Darris-O'Connor, born several years later, is now positioned to take over that distinction when he's sworn in alongside his new colleagues in January.
