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Gov. Charlie Baker holds a press conference at the Department of Transportation building in Boston on Nov. 9, 2016.

(SHIRA SCHOENBERG / THE REPUBLICAN)

BOSTON - Gov. Charlie Baker said Wednesday that he is hopeful that Republican president-elect Donald Trump will try to unify the country, and he brushed off suggestions that Trump might retaliate for Baker's lack of support for him.

"I thought both Donald Trump's comments last night and Secretary (Hillary) Clinton's this morning reflected a desire on the part of the two major players in this whole conversation to speak to and to reach out for a unified process going forward," Baker said. "I'm optimistic."

Trump, a billionaire businessman with no political experience, defeated the Democratic Clinton to win the presidency in a stunning upset Tuesday night.

Baker was one of the first Republican officials in the country to say publicly that he would not vote for Trump, because Baker did not believe Trump had the temperament to be president.

Trump has previously, in various contexts, suggested he would retaliate against those who wronged him. Massachusetts - like all states - relies on the federal government for a host of programs and money, ranging from transportation funding to Medicaid administration.

Asked whether he worried Massachusetts would be hurt by Baker's lack of support for Trump, Baker sounded hopeful that would not be the case.

"The message I heard last night over and over again was the election is over, we're moving on, it's time to unify the country and come together and improve the economy, make the country great," Baker said. "I think that was exactly the right message."

"I'm going to pursue a strategy on our end that presumes that's in fact what this is all about," Baker said.

Baker said he has not reached out to Trump, but he did call New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to congratulate him. Christie has been a close advisor to Trump. Christie helped Baker get elected when Christie was head of the Republican Governors Association, and Baker endorsed Christie's presidential bid.

Baker said he is waiting to draw any conclusions about how he will work with a Trump administration until Trump appoints his administration. "People are policy," Baker said. "We'll know more about the general direction of that administration as they start making announcements about people for key roles."

Baker drew a distinction between the contentious election and the job of running the country.

"Elections are contests... but governing is about the work," Baker said. "I fully expect this administration and the Congress and the Senate are going to be about the work, and there are a lot of things that need work for all of us. I'm looking forward to getting started with that."

With Trump in the White House and Republicans controlling both the House and the Senate, Republicans are likely to try to repeal President Barack Obama's landmark health care law, the Affordable Care Act.

Asked whether he was concerned about consequences for Massachusetts, Baker pointed out that Massachusetts was "very far down the road" toward implementing universal coverage under former Gov. Mitt Romney's 2006 reform, which was a model for Obama's law.

"We'll do what we need to do to make sure that we continue to be a national leader on this irrespective of whatever happens with regard to (the Affordable Care Act)," Baker said.