Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee lost his Democratic primary to businesswoman Helena Foulkes, becoming the first sitting governor in the United States to lose in a primary since 2018.

Foulkes, a former CVS executive and current Costco board member, defeated the incumbent by nearly 25 points in a rematch of the razor-thin 2022 Democratic primary.

Fox News shared further:

McKee first became governor in 2021 after Gov. Gina Raimondo left office to serve as Commerce Secretary in the Biden administration. The former Cumberland mayor and two-term lieutenant governor went on to win his first full term in 2022 after narrowly emerging from a crowded Democratic primary that included Foulkes.

The last sitting governor to lose his party’s nomination was Kansas Republican Gov. Jeff Colyer. Colyer lost the 2018 GOP primary to then-Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, backed by Donald Trump at the time, by fewer than 400 votes.

Foulkes has spent decades in the private sector, including as a senior executive at Rhode Island-based CVS Health, and later served as CEO of Hudson’s Bay Company. She sits on Costco’s board of directors.

ADVERTISEMENT

Her 2026 campaign marked Foulkes’ second bid for elected office after finishing second to McKee in the 2022 Democratic gubernatorial primary.

At the time of writing, the GOP primary between former model and actress Elaine Pelino and Aaron Guckian, an aide to former Gov. Don Carcieri, was too close to call.

With 98 percent of votes in, Guckian leads Pelino 50.6 percent to 49.4 percent.

Although the results aren’t official, Guckian is the projected winner.

POLITICO has more:

McKee’s campaign was bogged down by the botched handling of a years-long project to rebuild the Washington Bridge, which transports more than 70,000 drivers through Providence each day. The project has suffered from delays, cost overruns and disputes between state officials and former contractors that have raised questions about transparency and accountability for the project.

Foulkes spent much of the primary hammering McKee over his handling of the bridge project — a strategy that ultimately proved successful.

McKee had partially closed the bridge in 2023, and estimated at the time that it would fully reopen this summer. But last year, he said the bridge likely won’t be completed until 2028. Construction began in June.

Throughout his campaign, McKee continued to insist that the bridge project was handled well. He told The New York Times in August that “people are going to realize we did the right thing.”

 

Join The Conversation. Leave a Comment.