Baker plans to sit out presidential election

Printed from: https://newbostonpost.com/2016/05/24/baker-plans-to-sit-out-presidential-election/

BOSTON – After ruling out casting his ballot for the likely Republican, Democratic and Libertarian presidential tickets, Gov. Charlie Baker made it clear on Tuesday: he does not plan to vote for any presidential candidate.

“I would like to get some credit for the fact that rather than punting on the whole question of who I was going to vote for and saying it’s a secret ballot and it’s none of your business and all the rest, I just said I’m not going to vote for any of these people,” Baker said on Boston Herald Radio.

Baker has said he will not vote for Republican Donald Trump or Democrat Hillary Clinton. Last week’s announcement that former Gov. Bill Weld, who Baker counts as a mentor, would seek the Libertarian vice presidential nomination launched a round of speculation over how the Swampscott Republican would vote in November.

“Former Governor Weld is not the kind of guy who you can ever predict what his next move is going to be,” Baker said Tuesday. “It’s part of what makes him fun and interesting for those of you in the media, and I love the man, OK, and I really do, but I have all kinds of qualms with a lot of the Libertarian Party’s positions generally.”

Baker said he will be involved in state legislative races and campaigns around two ballot questions. He supports a bid to raise the cap on charter schools and opposes an effort to legalize adult use of marijuana.

“I plan to vote on election day,” Baker said. “I just don’t plan to vote for president.”

Written by Katie Lannan