You might be right. I don’t know anything about the Republicans running for Governor in MA.
Rhode Island is different from Massachusetts in a few ways. It has a significantly lower percentage of the university and government crowd, not to mention professional political activists (including reporters)l and a larger portion of its populace is blue-collar.
{larger portion of its populace is blue-collar.}
Which means Rhode Island is Labor Union heavy. For a New England state, RI does have some pro-life sentiment. It has the most restrictive abortion laws in New England, where the rest of the region is an abortion doctor’s paradise.
The problem is the RI GOP is made up of secular minded WASPs. Think the Chafee family. They’re a dying breed. Pro-life sentiment is in the church going Catholics. The problem is they vote for the Labor Unions. As a result, a pro-life Republican is unacceptable to RI, while a pro-life Dem is.