Bay State Republicans not expecting blowback from voters in local elections
Republicans running for office in Massachusetts are unlikely to take heat over President Trump’s most recent Twitter salvos and the torrent of criticism they’ve provoked, candidates and consultants said, because Trump is seen as his own entity entirely.
State Rep. Geoff Diehl (R-Whitman) — who’s challenging U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren in November 2018 and co-chaired Trump’s campaign in Massachusetts — said he expects tangible gains under Trump will eclipse any baggage an association with him may bring.
“I think Trump’s been fighting his own battles for a long time,” Diehl said. “The midterms are still a long ways off. I don’t see it having any effect down the road, but I think what will be more important is the positive effect he’s had on the economy, which seems to be already taking place, as far as the stock market, job numbers and reduced immigration numbers. I think overall, Trump still is having a positive effect for anybody who’s supported him in the past.”
Diehl said Trump appeals to more Bay State Democrats than many previous Republican presidents, pointing to the roughly 20,000 registered Dems who left the party before the last presidential primary and switched to unenrolled, which officials attributed to Trump’s appeal.
Some distance from Trump may help. Gov. Charlie Baker, who’s been roundly critical of Trump and is up for re-election, remains very strong in favorability polls despite taking fire from a competitive Democratic primary field, GOP consultant Rob Gray said.
“There always could be a wild-card effect with Trump, but we haven’t seen it yet,” Gray said. “I think people treat Trump as his own island.”
But GOP strategist Patrick Griffin said it’s important for Trump to rack up some legislative achievements before the midterms.
“Trump promised a lot, and a lot of voters who would have voted for Hillary Clinton — mainly white suburban voters who might have gone her way — voted for him in frustration,” Griffin said. “So he better have something more to show other than the fact that he settled the score with the cast of ‘Morning Joe.’ ”