Mass. lawmakers hope early endorsements of GOP candidates for governor drum up support

Beacon Hill Republicans are starting to throw their support behind the party’s candidates for governor, as the three contenders jockey for support more than eight months out from the primary election.

The winner of the GOP primary will take on Gov. Maura Healey in the 2026 general election. And Republicans who spoke to WBUR this month said they’re endorsing now, because they hope to sway undecided primary voters in a race they feel will determine Massachusetts’ future.

Rep. Marc Lombardo, a Billerica Republican, was one of the first state lawmakers to endorse a candidate this year. He backed venture capitalist and former MBTA chief Brian Shortsleeve roughly two months before the 53-year-old Marine Corps veteran even launched his campaign in May.

Lombardo called the 2026 race for Massachusetts governor “high stakes.”

“GOP elected officials and leaders who want to see change for Massachusetts and a better direction, we can't sit it out," he said in an interview. "We have to step up and make our voice known and get that message out to the voters so that they can understand that there is a different direction."

Shortsleeve, who worked under former Republican Gov. Charlie Baker, is running against Mike Kennealy, a former housing and economic development secretary who also served in the Baker administration. And a third contender is Michael Minogue, a former biotechnology executive who made his fortune selling heart pump-maker Abiomed Inc. to medical tech giant Johnson & Johnson.

All three men are wealthy with extensive business backgrounds. However, they're relatively unknown to voters across Massachusetts.

A University of Massachusetts/WCVB poll in October found more than half of the 183 Republicans or "pure independents" surveyed who planned to vote in the Republican primary were either “not too familiar” with or did not know the candidates.

Another 48% of those respondents said they were “very” or “somewhat” familiar with Minogue, Kennealy or Shortsleeve.

But the race is still developing, and some lawmakers hope their endorsements will help their preferred candidate.

“I'm hoping it 100% helps voters make a decision in my district,” said Rep. Nick Boldyga, a Southwick Republican who endorsed Shortsleeve in October. “The future of Massachusetts right now is so important that we have to get behind a candidate that can turn the state around.”

Baker has not said which candidate he might back. A spokesman for the former governor said he “has no plans to endorse in the GOP gubernatorial primary at this time.”

An aide to Karyn Polito, who served as lieutenant governor alongside Baker, did not respond to a WBUR inquiry.

The Massachusetts Republican Party plans to hold an April nominating convention before Republican and unenrolled voters decide in September who will challenge Healey in the November general election.

Rep. Hannah Kane, a Shrewsbury Republican, endorsed Kennealy last month. She said Kennealy reached out over a year ago to talk about his desire to run for governor.

Kane said it’s important for local Republicans to back candidates for statewide office.

“It's not easy to run statewide as a Republican in Massachusetts, and for the most part, candidates have a lot of work to do to build networks," she said in an interview. "Part of building a network is asking people who have networks to support you.”

Rep. Kimberly Ferguson, a Holden Republican who holds a leadership post in the House, also endorsed Kennealy Thursday.

No state lawmaker had endorsed Minogue as of early December, his campaign confirmed. In a statement to WBUR, a campaign spokeswoman slammed “political insiders” for lobbying for endorsements.

“Mike is earning something more meaningful: support from across Massachusetts,” the spokeswoman, Erin Maguire, said.

It’s too early to tell which of the three conservative candidates will have a lasting edge. Polling so far has yielded mixed results.

Kennealy led his opponents in the University of Massachusetts/WCVB poll, with 37% of respondents who identified as Republicans or “pure independents” saying they plan to back him in the primary.

Another 22% said they would vote for Shortsleeve and 23% backed Minogue, according to the survey. The poll had a 4-point margin of error.

A Boston Globe/Suffolk University poll in November found 59% of likely Republican primary voters were undecided ahead of the race. It said 21% backed Shortsleeve, while nearly 13% would vote for Kennealy and roughly 6% supported Minogue. That poll had a 10-point margin of error.

Shortsleeve is making hay of every endorsement he collects, touting them in press releases and press conferences.

One was Sen. Peter Durant, a Spencer Republican who backed him last month and told WBUR that staying neutral in the race “just didn’t make sense to me.”

Durant himself had briefly considered running for governor earlier this year, but backed away as others entered the race.

“We’ve all seen how a lack of leadership over the last three years has affected the Commonwealth," Durant said. "And to the extent anyone cares what I think, I believe it’s important to speak up when you know who the right person for the job is."