Former member of Congress · last served 111th Congress
Edward M. Kennedy
Edward Kennedy was a Democratic U.S. senator from Massachusetts, first elected to Congress in 1961, who sponsored 50 bills that became law (100th–111th Congress).
How we count: “Broke with party” is a yes/no roll call where the member voted against most of their own party on that vote (party as recorded; even splits not counted). “Pork: own share” splits each earmark shared by several members evenly among them.
Recent votes
No recorded roll-call votes in PORKER’s records. Roll-call records start in 2011.
5 most recent bills
- S. 1405 Longfellow House-Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site Designation ActDec 22, 2010 · Became Public Law No: 111-333.
- S. 1580 Protecting America's Workers ActAug 5, 2009 · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- S. 540 Medical Device Safety Act of 2009Aug 4, 2009 · Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 111-1031.
- S. 1411 Keeping PACE ActJul 8, 2009 · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- S. 1410 Time for Innovation Matters in Education Act of 2009Jul 8, 2009 · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Top bills sponsored
- S. 2240 (101st) Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency Act of 1990Became law
- S.J.Res. 74 (100th) A joint resolution to designate the month of May, 1987 as "National Cancer Institute Month".Became law
- S. 557 (100th) Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987Became law
- S.J.Res. 119 (103rd) A joint resolution to designate the month of March 1994 as "Irish-American Heritage Month".Became law
- S. 1430 (101st) National and Community Service Act of 1990Became law
- S. 636 (103rd) Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act of 1994Became law
- S. 2300 (101st) a bill to provide financial assistance to the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles, California, for the education programs of the Museum of Tolerance.Became law
- S. 1 (103rd) National Institutes of Health Revitalization Act of 1993Became law
Laws first, then bills that passed a chamber, were reported from committee, or drew the most cosponsors.
Elections Sen. Kennedy has won
Sen. Kennedy has won 6 U.S. Senate elections (1976, 1982, 1988, 1994, 2000, 2006). Of the contested races, margins ran from 17.1 to 56.9 points.
Full election history for this seat →
Source: MIT Election Data and Science Lab, U.S. House V15 / U.S. Senate V8 (CC0), retrieved 2026-10-18; winners matched to member records by seat and term. Results run through the 2024 elections; nothing from 2026 is shown until it is certified. A margin is a fact about one election, never a score of how well a member represents anyone, and PORKER does not rank members by it.
How has Massachusetts done while Sen. Kennedy served?
2005 to 2008 in Massachusetts: typical household income was up 4% after inflation, the share of people below the poverty line was about the same, and the share of workers looking for a job was down 0.4 points.
Each mini chart has its own scale, fitted to its lines (it does not start at zero), so compare the numbers, not the heights. Oxblood = state, grey = U.S.
While they served, not because of them. This shows what happened in Massachusetts during Kennedy’s time representing it (1961 to 2009). It does not say what the member did or caused. It is not a score, and PORKER never ranks members on it.
Survey years start at 2005. The yearly estimates for Massachusetts begin in 2005, so 1961 to 2004 are not shown. No 2020 yearly estimate exists.
Official records on bills this member sponsored
111th Congress. What Congress.gov lists for the 15 bills sponsored.
| Record | Bills | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Bills sponsored | 15 | Source: Congress.gov member record, PORKER copy of October 26, 2026 ↗ See them → |
| With a CBO cost estimate listed | 3 | See the 3 → |
| With a committee report listed | 1 | See the 1 → |
| With a Congress.gov note | 2 | See the 2 → |
Evidence
- How counted
- Bills where this member is the lead (first-listed) sponsor in the 111th Congress, read from the stored Congress.gov bill records
- Fields
- cboCostEstimates, committeeReports, constitutionalAuthorityStatementText, notes
- PORKER copy refreshed
- October 26, 2026 (nightly)
Read this first. These are counts of records Congress.gov lists. Many bills never get a CBO estimate or a report, so a zero is not a mark against a member. We never show this as a score.
Data as of Oct 26, 2026 · Sources: Congress.gov, Senate.gov, House Clerk, Appropriations Committee earmark tables. PORKER is non-partisan.