By Andy Metzger
State House News Service
BOSTON -- Mark Fisher, the tea party Republican who was beat handily by Charlie Baker in last week's gubernatorial primary, hasn't changed his mind much about the Republican nominee whom he has called "Democrat-lite" and "Democrat-heavy."
Fisher said he has vowed to "vote for the Republican" in the general election, but has yet to make up his mind whether to cast a ballot for Baker.
"It's a moving target. I'm going to wait and see if he moves back to the right, which would be a welcome thing, a welcome thing," Fisher told the News Service.
"My fear is that now he's in the general; he doesn't have a primary opponent; he'll move to track Democrat voters in the state, and that will be very troubling for me and all the other conservatives."
A Shrewsbury Republican who owns a metal-manufacturing company, Fisher was a newcomer to electoral politics who butted up against the establishment wing of the party and appeared on the primary ballot only after filing a lawsuit alleging improper vote-counting at the GOP convention in March.
During the primary, Fisher picked up more than 40,000 votes while Baker racked up more than 116,000. Fisher laid out a vision for a much more limited government. Baker, who has made a point of trying to appeal to all voters, avoided directly engaging with Fisher during the forums and debates where they appeared together.
"Charlie thanks Mr. Fisher for his spirited campaign," Baker spokesman Tim Buckley told the News Service in a statement.
"I've voted for candidates like Charlie, Gabriel Gomez, Scott Brown the second time around, having to hold my nose to do so, and other people who are in groups, tea party groups like myself who didn't vote for them and were critical of me voting for them," Fisher told the News Service. "It would be a similar thing with Charlie."
On the Democratic side, both primary challengers have endorsed the party's gubernatorial nominee Martha Coakley, with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Steven Grossman has been an outspoken backer of Coakley, in contrast to his outspoken criticism of her in the lead-up to the Sept. 9 vote.
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By Andy Metzger