But he showed the limitations of how far he’ll go in bucking GOP orthodoxy during the first of three debates against Democratic frontrunner Ed Markey ahead of a June 25 special election.

Gomez said he wouldn’t try to pass laws to undercut Roe vs. Wade, but he backed a 24-hour waiting period before a woman could have an abortion and said he would be willing to confirm a Supreme Court justice who opposes abortion rights.

He also opposed an assault weapons ban as ineffective, called on Attorney General Eric Holder to resign and endorsed a no-fly-zone over Syria.

Neither candidate scored a clear win, and neither strayed far from their expected lines.

( Also on POLITICO: Big buy for Gomez in Senate race)

Gomez spent the hour attacking Markey as a creature of Washington after 37 years in the House, a knee-jerk liberal and a tool of lobbyists.

Markey focused on trying to tie Gomez to “the same old stale Republican ideas,” noting the support he has received from Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and former Speaker Newt Gingrich.

The most heated exchange was over Benghazi.

Markey said that Republicans politicized hearings on the attack on the American consulate in Libya in an attempt to hurt Hillary Clinton ahead of a 2016 presidential campaign.

“We can’t allow this to be turned into a political attempt to just get at Hillary Clinton, rather than the facts of what happened,” said Markey. “You and the Republicans down in Congress are trying to use these issues for short-term political gain.”

Gomez called that outrageous, pointing out that a Massachusetts resident was one of the four who died in the Sept. 11 assault.

“Bringing up Secretary Clinton’s name is politicizing it,” Gomez said.

Markey shot back that Republicans are the ones who brought her name into the hearings.

“Every one of them tried to pin it on her,” he said, near the end of a four-minute back-and-forth on the issue.

Gomez, who served nine years as a Navy aircraft carrier pilot and a SEAL, took a hard line on Syria. He said enforcing a no-fly-zone is the minimum that the U.S. should do in a conflict that he said has already killed 80,000 people.

“We have an opportunity here to take out Iran’s best friend and ally,” said Gomez.

He made a gaffe during the beginning of his Syria answer. At first, he said that the U.S. needs to work closely with the best “terrorist groups” against the regime before clarifying that he meant “rebel groups.”

Markey praised Secretary of State John Kerry, whose seat the rivals are vying to fill, for his handling of the crisis and warned against a no-fly-zone.

“Unfortunately, if it’s done wrong, it could lead to military escalation on the ground,” he said. “It could pull in the United States of America.”

Gomez attacked Markey for voting against the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, the Patriot Act reauthorization and two resolutions to honor the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Markey said he opposed an early DHS bill because it stripped first responders of collective bargaining rights but supported the final legislation because worker rights were protected.

The men stood behind podiums directly next to each other in a television studio. The debate was sponsored by the Boston Globe and the local CBS affiliate.

A New England College poll published Tuesday showed Markey ahead by 12 points, 52 percent to 40 percent. Gomez leads by three points among independents, but Democrats have an overwhelming registration advantage.

Markey is the clear favorite, but low turnout in an off-year special election makes an upset possible. Gomez remains relatively unknown, even after winning a three-way Republican primary.

Scott Brown’s strong performance in the debates helped fuel the Republican’s 2010 upset against Martha Coakley.

Eager to avoid a repeat, Democrats are pulling out all the stops. First Lady Michelle Obama stumped for Markey last week, and President Barack Obama is flying into Boston to help Markey next Wednesday.

Gomez said he supports state, not federal, solutions to health care. He attacked Markey for voting against the elimination of a medical device tax in Obamacare. Markey said he wants to reduce tax breaks for oil companies and use the money to give the medical device industry, a big employer in the state, its tax break back.

On immigration, Gomez promised to work in a bipartisan way to pass comprehensive immigration reform. He said he would make the Gang of Eight into a “Gang of Nine.”

“I’m an absolutely new kind of Republican,” he said. “You know it and the people of Massachusetts know it.”