Baker picks family over campaign

Baker, who was giving serious consideration to announcing his candidacy this week, said that he and his wife, Lauren, decided Sunday night that a campaign would put an ''unfair burden" on their family. He conceded in an interview that Healey's big fund-raising lead also factored in his decision, but he said family issues were decisive.

''We were going over the fall schedule for the kids and they have stuff going on all the time," he said. ''I don't want to miss it."

Baker, 48, has two sons, 14 and 11 years old, and a daughter, 8. He said he will consider a future race for governor.

His announcement stunned many of his supporters and others in the political world who were convinced that Baker, who made his reputation in the administrations of governors William F. Weld and Paul Cellucci, would challenge Healey for the party's nomination. Baker said he would not run if Romney ran for reelection, but the healthcare CEO was widely believed to be preparing to resign his $1-million-a-year job to lay the groundwork for a campaign.

Baker's decision marks a major shift in the political dynamics of the 2006 race and a setback for the Democrats, who had hoped for a divisive, resource-draining primary fight among Republicans. The news comes after a well-orchestrated strategy by Healey and her advisers to promote her as Romney's heir apparent.

''This is a big boost for the Republicans," said Senate minority leader Brian P. Lees, a Republican from East Longmeadow. ''This decision by Baker will really solidify Kerry Healey as the candidate for the Republican Party. The Democrats will be slugging it out all spring and summer next year and won't be able to come together until the fall after the primary."

Romney has said he will make a decision on his own reelection plans this fall, but Healey and other Republicans are making plans as if he has decided to forgo a run. Baker's departure from the race means Healey, who has access to her husband's fortune to finance her campaign, is now free to consolidate her candidacy and focus on beating the Democrats. It will also give Healey greater leeway in the choice of lieutenant governor.

Yesterday, Healey's advisers issued a statement in which she praised Baker's ''tremendous commitment to public service."

''I know this was a difficult decision, and look forward to Charlie's continuing to help us keep Massachusetts state government on track as a member of our team and as a thought leader within the Republican Party," the Healey statement said.

Two Republican businessmen, Christy Mihos, the owner of Christy's Markets and a former Massachusetts Turnpike Authority board member, and James Rappaport, a Boston businessman and former GOP state chairman whose family made a fortune on Boston real estate, have privately expressed interest in the race if Baker did not run. Neither could be reached for comment yesterday.

To some in the state party, Baker represents a faction, mostly those in and around the Weld-Cellucci administration, that has been pushed aside by Romney.

But Baker, who is serving his first term as a selectman in his hometown of Swampscott, said he and his wife spent the weekend discussing his potential candidacy and came to the conclusion that the impact on his family was not worth his mounting a campaign that would have consumed him for more than a year.

''While this may be a good time for me politically to jump into a statewide campaign, it is simply not a good time for my family to take on this kind of adventure," Baker said in an e-mail to Harvard Pilgrim employees. ''My kids are still fairly young, we still enjoy each other's company(!), and it is simply undeniable -- at least to me -- that pursuing the Republican nomination for governor would be an unfair burden on them."

Baker was quickly losing ground to Healey because, as a nonprofit healthcare executive, he could not, under ethics guidelines, raise political funds or carry out political activities.

Campaign-finance laws limit individual donations to $500 a year and Baker is not personally wealthy. On the other hand, Healey has millions of dollars in personal funds to draw on. Since May, her husband, Affiliated Managers Group chief executive Sean M. Healey, has cashed in $13 million worth of stock options in his firm.

Baker also faced other political hurdles. A Boston Globe statewide poll published Aug. 21 showed Healey with a 2-to-1 lead over Baker among likely Republican primary voters. She also was more popular, with 44 percent of the 503 respondents rating her favorably, and 19 percent unfavorably; 12 percent of respondents were favorable to Baker, and 12 percent were unfavorable.

Healey's electoral experiences are limited. She ran twice for state representative and lost in her hometown of Beverly. Her only statewide race was against Rappaport for the lieutenant governor's nomination in 2002. She was hand-picked by Romney to be his running mate and won the race after he made a strong pitch in a television ad blitz on her behalf in the campaign's finals days. She also poured $1.8 million of her own funds into her campaign.

Some say a Republican primary would help the party and sharpen the candidates. ''I think primaries are good things," said Holly Robichaud, a Republican strategist. ''We are a small percentage of the voters, so the more we can [get] out there debating and getting the message out, the better. It helps get people involved."

But GOP leaders disagree. Lees said that without a primary battle, the state GOP and Healey can, among other things, go about replicating the grass-roots field organization that Romney built in his 2002 race for governor.