Geoff Diehl

Geoffrey G. Diehl (born April 23, 1969) is an American politician from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. A Republican, he represented the 7th Plymouth district in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 2011 to 2019.[1]

Geoff Diehl
Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives
from the 7th Plymouth district
In office
January 5, 2011 – January 2, 2019
Preceded byAllen McCarthy
Succeeded byAlyson Sullivan-Almeida
Personal details
Born (1969-04-23) April 23, 1969
Austin, Texas, U.S.
Political partyRepublican (2009–present)
Other political
affiliations		Democratic (1996–2009)
SpouseKathyJo Boss
Children2
EducationLehigh University (BA)

Diehl was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2018 and for governor of Massachusetts in 2022, losing both elections in landslides to Democrats Elizabeth Warren and Maura Healey respectively.[2]

Early life and education

Geoff Diehl was born in Austin, Texas. At the age of 3, his family moved to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He attended Lake Forest Academy and graduated from Lehigh University in 1992 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in government and urban studies.[3]

Career

After graduating, Diehl moved to New York City and worked in advertising. He later worked in television production in Los Angeles, California. In 2001, he moved to his wife's hometown of Whitman, Massachusetts, where he worked as a business development executive in the sign industry. He also supported his wife in successfully starting and running a performing arts school, Boss Academy.[4]

2010 election

Diehl began his campaign to represent the 7th Plymouth District on February 22, 2010. Diehl received support from previous representatives from the same district, including Andrew Card, Michael Sullivan, Ned Kirby, and Ronald Whitney. Diehl also received the endorsement of U.S. Senator Scott Brown.[5]

On November 2, 2010, he upset incumbent Allen McCarthy and was sworn in on January 5, 2011.

He was a member of the Joint Committee on Housing, House Committee on Global Warming and Climate Change, and the House Committee on Technology and Intergovernmental Affairs.[6]

Tank the Gas Tax Movement

Geoff Diehl was a lead supporter of the successful ballot question campaign to repeal the Massachusetts gas tax indexing law in 2014.[7]

2018 U.S. Senate election
Main article: 2018 United States Senate election in Massachusetts
Diehl on the campaign trail in 2018

In April 2017, Diehl announced his intent to challenge Elizabeth Warren for her U.S. Senate seat.[8][9] In the Republican primary election held on September 4, 2018, Diehl finished first in a field of three candidates.[10] The incumbent, Elizabeth Warren, defeated Diehl by 24 percentage points.[11][12]

2022 gubernatorial campaign
Main article: 2022 Massachusetts gubernatorial election

On July 4, 2021, Geoff Diehl announced he was running for governor of Massachusetts. In October 2021, Donald Trump endorsed Geoff Diehl for Governor.[13] He was Massachusetts state co-chair of Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and a Trump delegate to the 2016 Republican National Convention.[14] Diehl also supported Jim Lyons, the chairman of the Massachusetts Republican Party, who in January 2021 was reelected to the party chairmanship after defeating a challenge from Shawn Dooley.[15]

As a candidate, Diehl criticized federal and state mandates[16] put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic and continuously supported workers and first responders being fired for not taking the vaccine. He is a proponent of parents who want to decide for their children whether or not they would like a vaccine.[17]

At the state party convention on May 21, Diehl was officially endorsed by the Massachusetts Republican Party with 71% of the delegates' votes.[18] He won the Republican nomination on September 6. On November 8, Attorney General of Massachusetts and Democratic nominee Maura Healey handily defeated Diehl in the general election.[19]

Electoral history
United States Senate election in Massachusetts general election results by county, 2018:
  Warren—70–80%
  Warren—60–70%
  Warren—50–60%
  Diehl—40–50%
Massachusetts Gubernatorial Election, 2022
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Maura Healey 1,584,403 63.74
Republican Geoff Diehl 859,343 34.57
Libertarian Kevin Reed 39,244 1.58
Write-In Others 2,806 0.11
United States Senate election in Massachusetts, 2018[20]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Elizabeth Warren (incumbent) 1,633,371 60.34
Republican Geoff Diehl 979,210 36.17
Independent Shiva Ayyadurai 91,710 3.39
Write-In Others 2,799 0.10
2016 Election for Massachusetts' 7th Plymouth House District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Geoff Diehl (Incumbent) 17,088 99.20
Write-In Others 144 0.80
2015 Special Election for Massachusetts' 2nd Bristol and Plymouth State Senate District[21]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Michael Brady 14,397 56.9
Republican Geoff Diehl 10,245 40.5
Independent Anna Raduc 649 2.56
Write-In Others 10 0.04
2014 Election for Massachusetts' 7th Plymouth House District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Geoff Diehl (Incumbent) 11,528 99.20
Write-In Others 92 0.80
2012 Election for Massachusetts' 7th Plymouth House District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Geoff Diehl (Incumbent) 10,942 54.20
Democratic Robert L. Toomey, Jr. 9,232 45.70
Write-In Others 25 0.10
2010 Election for Massachusetts' 7th Plymouth House District[22]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Geoff Diehl 8,553 51.24
Democratic Allen J. McCarthy 8,132 48.72
Write-In Others 6 0.04

Personal life

Before he entered politics, Diehl was a member of the Whitman Finance Committee. He remains a member of the MetroSouth Chamber of Commerce and South Shore Chamber of Commerce. Diehl is also an Eagle Scout. Diehl and his wife, KathyJo, have two daughters. They live in Whitman, Massachusetts.[23]

References
  1. "Representative Geoff Diehl". www.malegislature.gov.
  2. Joyce, Tom. "Geoff Diehl To Run For Governor Of Massachusetts". NewBostonPost. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  3. "About Me". Geoff Diehl For Governor. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  4. "Boss Academy of Performing Arts". Boss Academy of Performing Arts.
  5. Preer, Robert (October 31, 2010). "Challengers, not all GOP, seek upsets". Boston.com. Boston Globe. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  6. "Representative Geoff Diehl". malegislature.gov. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  7. Matt Murphy. "Rep. Diehl leads way on gas tax question". wickedlocal.com. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  8. O'Sullivan, Jim (April 6, 2017). "GOP's Geoff Diehl sets stage for challenge to Elizabeth Warren". The Boston Globe. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  9. "It's Official: Republican Geoff Diehl Is Running To Unseat Senator Elizabeth Warren". August 2, 2017.
  10. "Massachusetts Primary Election Results". The New York Times. September 4, 2018. Retrieved September 4, 2018.
  11. "PD43+ » Search Elections". PD43+. Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Elections Division. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  12. "Return of Votes" (PDF). November 6, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 26, 2019. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  13. "Former President Donald Trump endorses Geoff Diehl in bid for Mass. Governor".
  14. Steve LeBlanc, Massachusetts delegates beginning trek to GOP convention, Associated Press (July 16, 2016).
  15. Christian M. Wade (January 5, 2021). "Lyons wins another term as GOP chair". Salem News.
  16. "Geoff Diehl on Employer Vaccine Mandates". YouTube.
  17. "Parents for Diehl".
  18. "Diehl wins, Doughty advances at GOP convention". May 22, 2022.
  19. https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ovr/
  20. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 29, 2018. Retrieved May 24, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  21. "PD43+ - 2015 State Senate Special General Election 2nd Bristol and Plymouth District". Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  22. "PD43+ - Search Elections". Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  23. Joyce, Tom (September 13, 2022). "Geoff Diehl Gets Specific On Tax-Cutting Agenda". NewBostonPost. Retrieved May 27, 2023.
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