The future of New England Republicanism is…

By LISA KASHINSKY 

09/14/2022 07:20 AM EDT

MIXED SIGNALS — New England’s final primaries were as much a testof former President Donald Trump’s hold over the GOP as they were a barometer for whether a dying breed of more moderate, less partisan Republicans could keep their way of politicking alive.

The results were mixed.

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu is through to a general election fight against Democrat Tom Sherman that forecasters say the incumbent is likely to win. Moderates also have hope in Rhode Island, where centrist former Cranston Mayor Allan Fung will take on Democratic state Treasurer Seth Magaziner in the 2nd Congressional District.

But Massachusetts Republicans handed Trump-endorsed conservative former state Rep. Geoff Diehl the party’s gubernatorial nomination last week over a more moderate businessman backed by Sununu. Moderate Gov. Charlie Baker, who declined to seek a third term, is refusing to weigh in on the race in which the Democrat, Attorney General Maura Healey, is the overwhelming favorite. And while Diehl has parted ways with adviser Corey Lewandowski, a former Trump campaign manager, since the primary, he continues to face questions from the press and attacks from Healey over the former president.

Trump didn’t endorse in New Hampshire. But the GOP race to take on Democratic Rep. Chris Pappasended in a face-off between two Trump administration alums who divided party leaders. Karoline Leavitt won, beating out Matt Mowers and Gail Huff Brown, a former WCVB reporter and wife of former Massachusetts senator and Trump-nominated U.S. ambassador Scott Brown. Leavitt, who could become one of the youngest people ever elected to Congress, champions the former president’s false claims that the 2020 election was “rigged.” The former assistant in the Trump White House press office has also embraced his brash style.

And in the Granite State’s closely-watched Republican Senate primary, retired Army Gen. Don Bolduc, who’s also echoed Trump’s election conspiracies, holds a slim lead over Sununu-backed state Senate President Chuck Morse. Morse appeared to concede the race in a post-2 a.m. tweet, though The Associated Press had not called the contest as of 7 a.m. Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan is already blasting Bolduc’s “radical, backward-looking agenda.”

GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. We’re not the only ones with petty primaries.

The Democratic contest for Rhode Island governor ended with Gov. Dan McKee telling an adviser to hang up on rival Helena Buonanno Foulkes on live television. Foulkes, who was trying to concede, said she was “unhappy” with that development and declined to tell WPRI whether she’ll support McKee in the general election.

McKee stood by his decision to publicly decline Foulkes’ call, telling WPRI: “Would you take a call as you’re celebrating a victory like this? They knew I was on stage.” We’ll see if they can bury the hatchet by this Sunday’s “Unity Dinner” Democratic Party fundraiser in Warwick.

TODAY — Baker attends the Pavilion Field at the Riverwalk opening in Lawrence at 10 a.m. and the opening of BMC’s Brockton Behavioral Health Facility at 4:30 p.m. Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito chairs a Governor’s Council meeting at noon. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu participates in the Boston Globe Summit kickoff at 9:30 a.m. at WBUR’s CitySpace and speaks at the WorldBoston 13th Annual Consuls Reception at 6:15 p.m. in Roxbury.

Tips? Scoops? Birthdays? Email me: lkashinsky@politico.com.

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DATELINE BEACON HILL

— “Advocates raise concerns about sports betting,” by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: “On Tuesday, the state Gaming Commission heard from academics and advocates for ’responsible gambling’ groups who cautioned that the state’s foray into betting on professional sports comes with the risk of increasing problem gambling.”

FROM THE HUB

— “Wu voted for Arroyo in DA primary,” by Gia Orsino, GBH News: “In an appearance on Boston Public Radio on Tuesday, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu revealed that she voted for Boston City Councilor Ricardo Arroyo in the Suffolk County District Attorney primary, despite withdrawing her endorsement after the Boston Globe published an interview with a woman who alleged sexual assault. Politics and policy, Wu said, were the most important consideration in the messy election with conflicting evidence of assault presented in redacted police files. According to released police reports, Arroyo was never charged with a crime.”

— “Boston challenging 2020 Census count,” by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: “Boston might end up in the 700,000 club yet. Mayor Michelle Wu formalized what the city’s been making noise about for the past year or so: challenging the 2020 Census count for Boston and claiming that the 675,647 official count misses significant numbers of college kids, prisoners and immigrants.”

YOU’VE GOT MAIL

— “Most Mass. primary voters voted early,” by Samantha J. Gross, Boston Globe: “Of the more than 1 million voters who cast ballots in the Massachusetts state primary last week, fewer than half actually voted on election day. According to Secretary of State William F. Galvin, 50.2 percent of ballots were cast before Sept. 6, with 45.6 percent cast by mail and 4.6 percent cast in person during the early voting period. The only other time most