As long as the national Republican Party continues to emphasize such stands as opposing legal abortion, embryonic stem-cell research and gay rights, New Englanders are not very likely to be attracted to the GOP, experts say. And in a region with the smallest number of evangelical Christians in the United States, according to public opinion surveys, few are drawn to Republican politics through religion.
"It is not your father or grandfather's Republican Party," says Howard Reiter, chairman of the political science department at the University of Connecticut. ``I've long suspected that this has a lot to do with religion. Religion just means something different in the Northeast and New England than it does in some other parts of the country."
Education also plays a role. New Englanders generally are more educated than those in other parts of the country, making them more likely to support liberal causes like stem cell research and gay rights. Whatever the reason, the GOP doesn't seem too concerned about making headway in this area. Republican representatives from New England like Rob Simmons and Chris Shays had often been criticized by Republicans for adopting liberal or moderate positions. Instead, Republicans and the Republican Party need to accept that, for now, Republicans will need to be moderate to succeed here. Those with true conservative issues like opposition to abortion and gay marriage are unlikely to be elected by the liberal electorate. Only then will blue New England turn purple.
