Richard Neal
Richard Neal, a Democrat who has represented Massachusetts's 1st congressional district since 1989 and chaired the House Ways and Means Committee from 2019 to 2023, faces independent Nadia Milleron in the 2026 election.
2026 Races & Market Forecast
Live TruthIndex™ and prediction market consensus for races contested by Richard Neal.
- Born
- February 14, 1949
- Birthplace
- Worcester, Massachusetts
- Education
- Springfield Technical High School
Holyoke Community College
American International College (Bachelor of Arts in political science, 1972)
University of Hartford (Master of Arts in public administration, 1976)
Biography & Campaign Analysis
Background
Richard Neal was born on February 14, 1949, in Worcester, Massachusetts, the oldest of three children of Mary and Edmund John Neal, and was raised in Springfield, where his father worked as a custodian at MassMutual.
His mother died when he was 13, and his father died while he was attending Springfield Technical High School, after which he and his sisters lived with their grandmother and later their aunt.
Neal attended Holyoke Community College and then American International College, graduating in 1972 with a Bachelor of Arts in political science.
He earned a Master of Arts in public administration from the University of Hartford's Barney School of Business and Public Administration in 1976 and taught history at Cathedral High School.
Career
Richard Neal began in politics as co-chairman of George McGovern's 1972 presidential campaign in Western Massachusetts and became an assistant to Springfield Mayor William C. Sullivan in 1973. He was elected to the Springfield City Council in 1978, served as its president from 1979, and was mayor of Springfield from 1983 to 1989.
Neal won the 2nd congressional district seat in 1988 after Democratic incumbent Edward Boland retired, and took office in 1989. After Massachusetts lost a seat following the 2010 census, most of his territory merged into the 1st district, which he has represented since 2013.
He moved to the House Ways and Means Committee in 1993, chaired it from 2019 to 2023, and has been dean of the Massachusetts House delegation since 2013. He has chaired the Friends of Ireland since 2007 and was inducted into the Irish American Hall of Fame in January 2020.
2026 race
Richard Neal is seeking a twentieth term in Massachusetts's 1st congressional district, which covers western Massachusetts and includes Springfield and Pittsfield. Neal was re-elected with 62.5% of the vote in 2024. In the 2026 Democratic primary he defeated teacher Jeromie Whalen, 54.0% to 45.9%. In the general election on November 3, 2026, he faces a rematch with independent candidate Nadia Milleron, a consumer advocate who also ran for the district in 2024.