Republican congressional challenger Nathan Bech received another endorsement from a prominent Bay State [img_assist|nid=65|title=Nathan Bech (R)|desc=|link=none|align=right|width=149|height=180]Republican Tuesday as former Lieutenant Gov. Kerry Healey threw her support behind him.

Bech, a former Army intelligence officer, is running against nine-term U.S. Rep. John Olver (D-Amherst) in the 1st Congressional District.

Healey, who was former Gov. Mitt Romney's second in command and was the Republican nominee for governor in 2006, endorsed Bech at an event at the East Mountain Country Club in Westfield, according to a statement released by the campaign.

[img_assist|nid=597|title=Former Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey (R)|desc=|link=none|url=undefined|align=left|width=142|height=192]"Bech knows that our dependence on foreign oil is the most dangerous threat facing America," Healey said. "Bech wants to produce our own energy by drilling in the U.S., by extending and improving tax credits for alternatives, and by investing in new technology."

The Bech campaign said the endorsement is part of a concerted effort to court women. Former Gov. Jane Swift, another prominent woman Republican in the state, endorsed Bech in the middle of June. Bech has created a "Women's Leadership Council" to advise his campaign and the campaign has said that Bay State women are considered up for grabs in this election since U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton's (D-N.Y.) departure from the presidential race.