Industry Donors, Key Endorsements Shape Suffolk and Middlesex Primary

After 14 years in the Senate without facing a primary challenger, State Sen. William N. Brownsberger ’78 will face former Boston mayoral aide Daniel A. Lander ’14 at the ballot box Tuesday.

Lander launched his bid to unseat the longtime incumbent in December. Since then, both candidates have garnered high-profile political support and raised six-figure sums.

Brownsberger has raised more than $313,000, more funding than any other local race, since the beginning of the year. His campaign has seen strong support from commercial real estate interests, garnering donations from BXP president Doug Linde, Boylston Properties founding principal William McQuillan, and PACs affiliated with the Greater Boston Real Estate Board and the Real Estate Bar Association for Massachusetts.

On housing, Brownsberger has opposed efforts to increase real estate transfer taxes and lift the state’s ban on rent control. His approach to tackling housing affordability has instead emphasized permitting reforms, tax relief, and eliminating tenant-paid broker fees.

Meanwhile, Lander has tapped connections in the biotechnology industry to help raise roughly $212,000 since launching his campaign. His father, Eric S. Lander, was the founding director and is a core institute member of the Broad Institute, a biomedical research center affiliated with MIT and Harvard.

Lander has received backing from a number of prominent biotechnology figures, many giving the maximum $1,000 to his campaign. Among Lander’s top-dollar contributors are current Broad director Todd Golub, Harvard Medical School dean George Q. Daley ’82, Vertex founder Josh Boger, LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman, Broad core institute member Feng Zhang, and three members of the Broad family.

Both candidates have also secured support from elected officials at the federal, state, and local levels.

Brownsberger heads into the primary backed by U.S. Representative Katherine M. Clark (D-Mass.), Governor Maura T. Healey ’92, Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, and Attorney General Andrea J. Campbell.

Lander, on the other hand, is endorsed by two of his former bosses — Wu and U.S. Senator Elizabeth A. Warren (D-Mass.). The candidates have also split endorsements from city councilors in Cambridge, Belmont, and Watertown.

In her endorsement, Wu highlighted Lander’s previous work as her policy aide, which focused on housing affordability and securing free access to museums for Boston residents. Warren similarly praised Lander — who served as senior political adviser to her 2020 presidential campaign — for his track record working on political campaigns.

Lander’s ties to Wu have also drawn scrutiny. At an August debate, he was asked whether Wu would influence his votes in the legislature if elected. Brownsberger opposed Wu’s proposal to shift more of Boston’s property-tax burden onto commercial properties, instead sponsoring alternative tax legislation.

Though Lander acknowledged in a June interview with The Crimson that working with Wu inspired him to run for a seat in the legislature, he said in a debate last week that he first began considering a run for office two years ago.

Throughout their campaigns, Brownsberger and Lander have frequently clashed over how the State House should tackle housing affordability and transparency.

Lander has criticized the Legislature’s slow response to the housing crisis, advocating for rent stabilization and more social housing throughout his campaign. In a June debate, Brownsberger defended his work in the Senate, including his support for the 2024 Affordable Homes Act, which authorized billions of dollars for housing programs.

On the campaign trail, the two have sharply split over legislative transparency on Beacon Hill. Lander has openly supported an audit of the legislature, arguing that legislators have failed to give voters the openness they have demanded.

Brownsberger, the Senate president pro tempore, has repeatedly defended the State House’s transparency record. He has pointed to disclosure reforms and the public availability of votes and amendments, giving the Senate a “B-” on transparency during the June debate, compared with Lander’s “F.”

—Staff writer Thamini Vijeyasingam can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on X @vijeyasingam.