Worcester Business Journal

8 Worcester Business Journal | June 13, 2022 | wbjournal.com Aer they were selected for the Sept. 6 Republican primary ballot for governor, Geoff Diehl and Chris Doughty discussed with WBJ their plans for economic development, housing & workforce BY LAURA FINALDI Special to WBJ O n May 21, Massachusetts Republicans convened at Springfield's MassMutual Center to anoint their candidates in the 2022 race for governor, seeking to replace the outgoing Republican Charlie Baker. e two candidates who will appear on the Sept. 6 primary ballot are former state representative Geoff Diehl and Wrentham businessman Chris Doughty. Diehl has more experience in state politics and the endorsement of former President Donald Trump, but Doughty, the president of Capstan Atlantic, has found success with an economic message focused largely on his strong belief in the free market. e Worcester Business Journal spoke to both Diehl and Doughty separately aer the convention to ask about economic issues in Central Massachusetts and the commonwealth as a whole. What would you do as governor to support the biopharma industry and manufacturing in the central part of the state, given today's supply chain issues? Chris Doughty: This is the world I come from. A couple of thoughts. I want to support all industries, not just one. That's a mistake we've made in our state. Every industry is important. Two is a good tax policy. If you look at New Hampshire, a lot of businesses are planning and looking at New Hampshire because of good tax policy. As governor, that's one of the first things I want to work on. I want to create a tax policy so we can compete with New Hampshire and Tennessee and all these other states with favorable tax policies, as an incentive to keep our businesses here, and to begin attracting businesses to our state. In Massachusetts, we've layered regulations on regulations on regulations that have made us less business friendly as a state. We're known as a state with a heavy regulatory burden on businesses. I'd like to start removing as many as I can with our state leaders and business community, to make it so we have a reputation as being more pro-business. Geoff Diehl: Coming from a background where my wife and I own a business, and I used to work in manufacturing as well, I know labor and energy costs tend to be a bit higher here than other parts of the country. Our job is to keep those businesses in the state and not let them leave, but on top of that, the job of the governor is to recruit companies. Biomanufacturing is one of those industries where it's very easy to make a case that people need to come to Massachusetts to be a part of it. It's almost the Silicon Valley of the East Coast when it comes to technology and what it means for health care and our future. Energy is a huge part of the cost when you're dealing with those raw materials. Beyond just supply chain issues they may face, you want to make sure the state is keeping those energy costs as low as possible for manufacturers. ere's an overall attempt to make sure our energy consumption reflects a cleaner environment, but at the same time I want to make that transition palatable and something manufacturing can handle. Otherwise, because of the cost, you'll see very quickly people decide they have to take their plants elsewhere. Becoming the next Republican governor Chris Doughty President Capstan Atlantic, in Wrentham Residence: Wrentham Hometown: Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif. Colleges: Brigham Young University, Harvard Business School Geoff Diehl Former state representative Represented: 7th Plymouth district (Abington, East Bridgewater, and Whitman) Residence: Whitman Hometown: Bethlehem, Pa. College: Lehigh University Geoff Diehl (right) received 849 delegate votes at the 2022 Massachusetts Republican Nom- inating Convention on May 21 in Springfield, while Chris Doughty received 345 delegates. Both were enough to qualify for the primary ballot. PHOTO | COURTESY OF THE DOUGHTY COMMITTEE PHOTO | STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE PHOTO | COURTESY OF DIEHL FOR MA

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