Dan McKee loses Rhode Island governor’s race to Helena Foulkes
Helena Foulkes defeated incumbent Governor Dan McKee in the Rhode Island Democratic primary. The loss is attributed to widespread dissatisfaction with McKee's handling of state infrastructure, specifically the Washington Bridge.
Why it matters
Incumbent gubernatorial losses in primaries are rare, signaling a significant shift in local political sentiment driven by infrastructure failures.
Helena Foulkes defeated Gov. Dan McKee in Rhode Island's Democratic gubernatorial primary on Wednesday, a rare rebuke of a sitting governor in a race dominated by the state's troubled Washington Bridge.
It was the second time the two have faced each other. McKee narrowly beat Foulkes in a five-candidate primary in 2022, his first run for the office after being elevated from lieutenant governor in 2021, when sitting Gov. Gina Raimondo resigned to join the Biden administration.
Foulkes, a former president of CVS Pharmacy, attacked McKee’s performance throughout her campaign, frequently pointing to the incumbent’s growing unpopularity among Rhode Islanders due to his handling of infrastructure in the state.
At a debate last month, McKee accused Foulkes of "disparaging the state of Rhode Island." She replied: "I'm certainly not disparaging the state of Rhode Island. I'm disparaging its governor."
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