Incumbent Gov. Baker will face Gonzalez

BOSTON — Republican Gov. Charlie Baker, a moderate seeking a second term in solidly Democratic Massachusetts, fended off a primary challenge Tuesday from conservative minister Scott Lively, a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump who questioned Baker’s commitment to the Republican platform.

Baker, who has distanced himself from Trump, will face in November the winner of the Democratic primary, Jay Gonzalez. He defeated Robert Massie on Tuesday.

Polling has shown Baker to be highly popular with voters, including many Democrats, throughout his first term — support he credits in part to his willingness to work with Democratic legislative leaders at the Statehouse.

Baker has said he did not cast a vote in the 2016 presidential election because he didn’t believe Trump had the “temperament” to be president, nor was he a “fan” of Hillary Clinton. He has been a frequent critic of White House policy.

Lively, who has called Trump “God’s man in the White House,” qualified for the primary ballot by receiving support from nearly 28 percent of delegates to the Republican state convention in April, well above the required 15 percent threshold. He frequently called Baker a RINO, a Republican in name only, but had little money or staff to mount a serious challenge to the well-financed incumbent.

Lively has a history of anti-LGBT sentiments. He gained notoriety for being sued by an East African advocacy group that accused him of waging a campaign to persecute gays in Uganda. He also co-authored a book espousing a theory that gay men heavily influenced Germany’s Nazi party.