Democratic Lieutenant Governor Candidate Bret Bero Has Given Money To Massachusetts Republicans In Recent Years
By Tom Joyce | July 28, 2021, 23:55 EDT
He may be running for lieutenant governor of Massachusetts as a Democrat, but he has given money to some Republicans in the Bay State over the years.
Babson College lecturer Bret Bero is one of two Democrats running for lieutenant governor along with state Representative Tami Gouveia (D-Acton). While Gouveia said that there is “a special place in Hell” for former Massachusetts Republican governor Mitt Romney last year because he was open to the idea of confirming Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court, Bero has taken a different approach.
In 2012, Bero, who lives in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of Boston, apparently backed former U.S. Senator Scott Brown (R-Wrentham) for re-election. He gave $500 to Brown’s campaign in June 2012 and no money to Brown’s Democratic challenger, current U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Cambridge), according to campaign finance data from the Federal Elections Commission. Warren defeated Brown in the November 2012 general election.
The other Republican Bero donated to federally makes it clear that he is no fan of former President Donald Trump. Bero gave former Massachusetts governor Bill Weld’s presidential campaign a $500 contribution in April 2019. Weld was one of a few anti-Trump Republicans who primaried the then-incumbent president.
Bero’s first federal contributions to Democrats came last year. He gave $350 to President Joe Biden’s presidential campaign, $50 to former U.S. Representative Joseph P. Kennedy III (D-Newton) in his failed U.S. Senate bid, as well as $100 to South Carolina Democrat Jaime Harrison, who unsuccessfully ran against U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina).
Bero also made a pair of contributions in the 2018 election cycle — including one that shows he supported incumbent Republican governor Charlie Baker for governor, according to the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance. Bero contributed $100 to the Baker campaign in October 2018. Additionally, he gave the Democratic attorney general of Massachusetts Maura Healey $125 in her successful re-election bid back in June 2018.
Bero was contacted recently about his campaign donations by NewBostonPost. A press spokesman emailed a statement in response. Bero said:
I, like a plurality of the Commonwealth’s voters, was a registered independent who gave to and voted for candidates from both parties. The storming of the Capital on January 6th and subsequent denial of events from that day from Republican leadership prompted me to become a Democrat. I believe that a donation to any Republican post January 6th enables the extremists in the GOP. It is my hope that other independents will join me in the switch so that we can take back the corner office. And that I welcome Democratic voters to research my experience and position on the issues. If they agree with those positions and believe that my small business experience would benefit the State, they should vote for me.
Although Bero donated to Baker last time, Bero may run on a ticket against him in 2022. It’s unclear if Baker will seek a third term, but he hasn’t publicly ruled it out.
As of the start of this month, the Bero campaign had $208,937.21 in its account. The campaign raised $233,767.64 in June, with Bero himself contributing $200,000.
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