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Rhode Island voters will go to the polls on Wednesday with Gov. Daniel McKee facing a primary challenge from Helena Foulkes, with the latest Emerson College poll having Foulkes ahead by 15 points in a rematch of the 2022 primary, where McKee just narrowly came out on top.
While 25% of voters were undecided at the time of the poll and McKee did gain 5% since May, he is among the nation’s least popular governors, ranked as the third lowest approval rating for a governor by Morning Consult. If McKee loses, he will be the first elected sitting governor to lose in a primary since 2014.
Here are the races to watch today:
Rhode Island governor’s race
Originally serving as lieutenant governor, McKee assumed the position in 2021 after Gina Raimondo was tapped by former President Joe Biden to become secretary of commerce. He was reelected in 2022, but his first full term has been plagued by the Washington Bridge closure.
The westbound bridge which carries traffic from East Providence to Providence was shut down in December 2023 after broken anchor rods were discovered. The rebuild of the bridge is set to cost $427 million and is scheduled to be completed in Nov. 2028, but the project was initially set to cost $368 million and be finished this past August. Whether or not McKee is responsible, the bridge has swayed voters away, said Maureen Moakley, a professor emeritus at University Rhode Island.
“He is unpopular,” Moakley said. “He was doomed from Day One because of the bridge…the attitude of the voters I think is we need some change, we need some new people.”
Foulkes has never served in public office, but she has political ties. Her uncle and grandfather, Chris and Thomas Dodd, were senators, and she is endorsed by Nancy Pelosi, who was college roommates with Foulkes’ mother.
The former CVS pharmacy president has campaigned on housing and affordability, some of the most important issues of this election season. She has leaned into her 25-year-career as evidence for why she can make healthcare more accessible, such as by raising Medicaid reimbursement rates, and she’s proposed a Millionaire’s Tax, which would allot money to build over 20,000 homes by adding an additional 3% tax on incomes over $1,000,000.
Adam Myers, a professor of political science at Providence College, told CBS that while these are top-of-mind issues for voters, this is not a matter of Foulkes’ policies against McKee’s.
“This election is more of a referendum on McKee than it is a vote like about her,” Myers said. “They don’t perceive McKee as a competent governor, and they think that Foulkes is going to bring more competence to the position, and I don’t really think it has a whole lot to do with her stances on the issues.”
The Cook Political Report labels the general election as solid Democratic. Republicans Aarron Guckian and Elaine Pelino will square off to be the GOP candidate in November.
Providence mayor
McKee may not be the only state official to lose his position. As the Democrat Party sees a rise in more radical candidates, Providence hosts its own test of ideology.
Democratic socialist and State Representative David Morales is challenging first-term Mayor Brett Smiley. Morales carries endorsements from progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Ro Khanna. Smiley has tried to draw stark contrast from his opponent, alleging Morales wants to defund the police. Morales has denied that he would, but the 27-year-old does support more leftist policies like rent stabilization.
“It’s possible that all of these major elected officials in Rhode Island will lose their races,” Myers said. “It will definitely be kind of like a minor earthquake in Rhode Island politics if that happens.”
