The Rhode Island State House will welcome a new governor in 2027, after challenger Helena Foulkes unseated incumbent Gov. Dan McKee in Wednesday’s Democratic primary, according to projections by the Associated Press.
Unofficial results from the state Board of Elections showed Foulkes with a 24-point victory, 62% to 38%, which is a wider margin than indicated in most polls.
As the conclusion became clear, a roar went up among a few hundred Foulkes supporters gathered outside Track 15, a food hall in Providence, including the candidate’s father, Bernie Buonnano, and other family members.
Foulkes, a 62-year-old former CVS executive, gave a classic general election speech in claiming her victory: She offered an olive branch to McKee and his supporters, vowed to be a governor for all Rhode Islanders, highlighted a few pressing problems and, in a pre-emptive strike against independent Ken Block, called for Rhode Island to create a line-item veto.
“To every single one of you here tonight, and across this state, thank you,” Foulkes said to cheers. “You got us here. This was all about all of us together.”
She also sounded empathetic, saying that too many Rhode Islanders are struggling to get by, “and that struggle doesn’t care what party you belong to.”
“My deep hope is that I can help each and every one of you live the life that you and your family hope to achieve,” said Foulkes. “We can only do this by restoring trust and getting things done – getting things done for you and your family to make your lives better.”
The Democratic nominee suggested she hopes to take action against the high cost of infant child care, which she said is higher than in-state college tuition. And after emphasizing during her primary campaign taking more aggressive action against the housing crisis, she reiterated that that will remain a focus should she win come November.
Foulkes came within 3 percentage points of beating McKee in the 2022 primary. On Wednesday, the AP made the call for Foulkes just 23 minutes after polls closed.
Though the defeat of a sitting governor in a primary is rare, Wednesday’s results are not a surprise. The last time an incumbent governor lost a primary in Rhode Island was in 1994, when Myrth York, a liberal state senator from the East Side of Providence, clobbered the mercurial Bruce Sundlun.
However, apparently fueled in large part by voter dissatisfaction over McKee’s response to the Washington Bridge crisis, Foulkes held a double-digit lead over McKee in most polls throughout the 2026 campaign.
'Proud’ at the end, McKee concedes
Despite the bad news, McKee entered to applause at his election watch party on the west side of Providence. Pop music blared out of speakers as he took the podium.
“I’m so proud to be able to have worked with the team that I have worked with for the last five-and-a-half years during the difficult issues,” McKee told a small crowd. “And we’ve addressed them all.”
In his concession speech, the 75-year-old reflected on his long career. McKee was elected to the town council in his hometown of Cumberland in 1992. He went on to serve as the town’s mayor for 12 years, and as Rhode Island’s lieutenant governor for two terms.
“To the voters… thank you so much for participating in this democracy that I love so much,” the current governor said. “And, certainly, all the people who’ve ever cast their ballot for me, I always felt as though I was so privileged to have their support.”
Former CVS executive targets governor’s office
Foulkes is best known for her 25-year tenure at Woonsocket-based CVS — one of the few publicly traded companies based in Rhode Island — where she served as president of CVS Pharmacy, a subsidiary of the larger corporation, from 2014 to 2018.
The McKee campaign’s main attack on Foulkes claimed she put profits over people and should have done more to limit CVS’s distribution of opioids. Foulkes has cited a 40% reduction in opioids during her watch, which she claims is greater than that of any other large pharmacy.
Housing has been the centerpiece of Foulkes’s campaign. She vows to build 20,000 new units over eight years, while taking additional steps to address the housing crisis. Foulkes calls for using the new state surtax on income over $1 million to fund these efforts, although it’s unclear if the legislature will go along with that plan.
Foulkes grew up on the East Side as the oldest of five children in what she has called “a fairly traditional Irish Italian Catholic family.” She went to Harvard University and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Foulkes has received lucrative compensation in her business career, ranking among the highest-paid CEOs in Canada while working for Hudson Bay Company. She made more than $300,000 for serving on Costco’s board in 2024.
Foulkes lives in Providence with her husband, William Foulkes. They have four children.
Washington Bridge dogged McKee
Though an incumbent Democrat in a heavily blue state, McKee faced an uphill battle in the primary. An August poll found that the governor had just 30% of the vote to Foulkes’s 45%.
McKee inherited his governorship in 2021, when Gina Raimondo left the post to serve as the U.S. Secretary of Commerce under former President Joe Biden. McKee, who had been elected as the state’s lieutenant governor in 2014 and 2018, stepped up.
In 2022, McKee was elected to his first full term as governor, receiving approximately 33% of the vote in the Democratic primary as Foulkes closed strong. McKee went on to beat Republican Ashley Kalus in the general election with 58% of the vote.
Throughout the 2026 campaign, McKee touted his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as policy achievements such as creating Rhode Island’s first child tax credit, eliminating tax on Social Security and signing a bill that banned the sale of certain semiautomatic rifles commonly called assault weapons. He also highlighted his housing plan, which increased new housing permits.
However, McKee’s greatest political liability is widely considered to be his handling of the closure of the westbound Washington Bridge. Rhode Islanders have sat in Washington Bridge traffic for nearly three years — allowing frustration to foment.
Originally, the state had aimed to open a new bridge by August of 2026 — ahead of the primary. But the state’s request for proposals didn’t receive any bids. Last year, the state eventually awarded a construction contract, setting a completion goal in 2028.
Before his upset, McKee was 3-0 in competitive statewide elections. In addition to his 2022 win, he was twice elected lieutenant governor in 2014 and 2018.
Multi-candidate race looms
Foulkes will now turn her attention to the Nov. 3 general election. The Republican primary race between Aaron Guckian and Elaine Pelino has not yet been called.
Independent Ken Block, who lost a 2014 GOP primary for governor and who ran as a candidate of the now-defunct Moderate Party in 2010, also expects to be on the ballot. As do two lesser-known independents, Jasjit Gotra and C.D. Reynolds.
McKee’s term runs until early January, when the new governor is sworn in.
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