RI Dems convention split leaves no endorsements for governor, LG and AG

Bad news for McKee and Matos

By Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current

Neither Gov. Dan McKee nor challenger Helena Foulkes will get the top spot and asterisk signaling the party endorsement on the September primary ballot after the Rhode Island Democratic Party declined to endorse either at its state committee convention Saturday.

The outcome marks yet another setback for McKee, who will be the first sitting governor in at least recent history not to win the backing of his party, said Joe Fleming, a WPRI 12 political analyst.

“I don’t recall an incumbent governor ever not winning the endorsement, and I’ve been around a long time,” Fleming said in an interview Monday. “This is not a good sign for the governor.”

McKee received 81 votes to Foulkes’ 75, while 11 voting committee members opted not to endorse, according to vote totals shared by the Rhode Island Democratic Party. To secure party backing, candidates need to get 50% of all votes cast plus one — or 84 of the 167 committee members who cast ballots at the Teamsters Local 251 union hall in East Providence Saturday.

McKee signs charter school moratorium bills, reversing his career-long commitment

Gov flip-flops on what used to be his signature issue

By Alexander Castro, Rhode Island Current

Photo by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current

Gov. Dan McKee signed into law Thursday a three-year moratorium on new charter schools in the Ocean State, embracing a pause on the local growth of an educational model with which he has long been associated.

“The circumstances have changed,” McKee told reporters Thursday.

Back in 2021, McKee suggested he’d veto a similar, albeit unsuccessful, piece of legislation. Part of the bedrock in the governor’s political brand had been his push for the creation of mayoral academies — a special kind of public charter school — during his time as the mayor of Cumberland in the late 2000s.

The governor had received the moratorium bill on his desk Tuesday and under the state constitution, still had until Tuesday, June 23, to sign or veto the bill. McKee strode out the Providence County Courthouse Thursday to explain to reporters why he had signed the charter school ban bill with five days to spare.

“I haven’t backed off, like, say, ‘Oh, let’s put charters out of business.’ I haven’t said that,” McKee told reporters after an unrelated afternoon appearance at a Law Day essay contest award ceremony for high schoolers at Rhode Island Supreme Court. “I said, ‘Let’s support the charters.’ And I’ve done that more than once.”

BREAKING NEWS from Ted Nesi, WPRI:
NO endorsement for McKee from RI Democratic
Party. Highly unusual for an incumbent.

But much has changed in the five years since McKee took office, he told reporters.

“I’m a public school advocate, and I will use any tool in the box to help us reach the potential for our students that live in the state of Rhode Island,” McKee said after he signed the two companion bills Thursday. “So that’s no different, but today there are some circumstances that we need to address.”

Those circumstances include enrollment declines in public schools — about 10,000 students in all, in the time he’s been governor, McKee said — and a pressing need to reassess how the state funds education via a formula for determining state aid to local school districts.

Charlestown Democrats - Don’t be fooled

There is only ONE Democrat running in the September 9 primary

By Will Collette

Boisclair sign in front of Jim Mageau's house.
Photo by Will Collette

The September 9 Democratic primary is important not just for the three statewide contests to pick candidates for attorney general and lieutenant governor plus the epic match-up pitting Helena Foulkes against hapless incumbent Governor Dan McKee.

Here in Charlestown, September 9 will decide who will represent Charlestown in the Rhode Island House of Representatives. 

It will feature incumbent Rep. Tina Spears, running for a third term versus self-described sex crime lawyer Leah Boisclair who is backed by rich MAGA gun nut Dave Levesque.

Here is her "menu" of sex crimes she is willing to defend from her own website:

Rape, child rape, child pornography, sex trafficking, slavery are all crimes Boisclair will defend

Boisclair is running as a Democrat even though she has no connection to the Democratic Party other than to say she’s a Democrat this year. Her signs are popping up along South County Trail, including in front of the house of Charlestown’s most vocal Trumper Jim Mageau.

Her record is that of running a law practice that takes pride in representing child abusers, rapists, spouse beaters, bad drivers, crooks and cheats. She uses her website to advertise these specialties and to seek more such clients.

Sure, under the Constitution, everyone is entitled to the presumption of innocence and to legal counsel. But LAWYERS choose who they will represent.

Even public defenders have discretion under the Code of Professional Responsibility to decline representation to a client if they are unable to mount a rigorous defense. In fact, the Rhode Island version of the Code expressly acknowledges “[A] lawyer is also guided by personal conscience and the approbation of professional peers.”

Boisclair CHOOSES to represent scumbags. Don’t believe me? READ her own website, as well as the screenshots I have presented taken directly from that site. I was particularly impressed with her graphics in this section on her representation of men accused of crimes against women:

But wait, there's MORE! Here are the other types of crime she will defend:

How is Boisclair different from, for example, a mob lawyer? Or a Trump lawyer? Or a lawyer defending men in Jeffrey Epstein’s circle of friends? Or any other pedo protector? I dunno…you tell me.

I would not want to spend a lot of time in her office's waiting room.

On this alone, I could never support Boisclair. Frankly, why would ANY Charlestown voter want Boisclair to represent then in the General Assembly? I’d rather bring back Flip Filippi, even though he represented the January 6 insurrectionists, the Oath Keepers. But as the saying goes, “but wait, there’s more!”

Boisclair’s main backer, far right MAGA gun nut Dave Levesque, set up 40, count ‘em 40, political action committees under the banner of the “League of Rhode Island Businesses” (LORIB). He has a statewide plus 39 “local” PACs, supposedly for each Rhode Island city and town. Their registrations all look the same, with no local people on any of the PACs and that includes the Charlestown LORIB PAC.

See if you can find any connection to Charlestown in the Charlestown LORIB PAC:

Levesque uses these PACs to get around the state campaign finance law limiting PACs to $2000 in contributions to a single candidate. Since Levesque controls all the LORIB PACs, he simply cuts checks to endorsed candidates from several of his PACs.

Levesque owns the Brewed Awakenings coffee shop chain and is a long-time anti-gun control activist. The gun lobby is also heavily backing his candidates.

Support - LORIB Main PAC

Levesque also takes in anonymous donations. In fact, he has solicited donations by advertising how they can game the system to prevent having their names reported as LORIB donors.

He set Boisclair up with six LORIB checks totaling $10,500 coming from six LORIB PACs. There’s the Charlestown LORIB PAC of course, plus the LORIB PACs purporting to be from Westerly, South Kingstown, North Kingstown, Newport and Block Island.

Levesque also opposes any attempt to tax the rich. He was a big opponent to last year’s “Taylor Swift” tax that imposes a state levy on multi-million properties owned by non-residents. He also unsuccessfully fought this year’s “Millionaire Tax” that imposes a 1% income tax surcharge on millionaires.

His candidates, including Leah Boisclair, toe that line. They should have a generic LORIB bumper sticker reading “Don’t regulate guns. Don’t tax the rich.”

Levesque has targeted nearly every Democratic woman legislator in South County because their progressive stances. He is bankrolling opponents to our state Senator Victoria Gu as well as South Kingstown Dems Teresa Tanzi, Carol McEntee, Alana DiMario, Kathy Fogarty and Bridgette Valverde.

Sen. Alana DiMario and Rep. Kathy Fogarty, both targeted by Levesque, introduced legislation to close what ought to be called the “Levesque Loophole” (2026-S 2720, 2026-H 7450) by extending the $2000 limit to apply to multiple PACs that have the same owner. Unfortunately, that legislation did not pass.

Finally, Boisclair’s land use legal work ought to earn her the opposition of the Charlestown Citizens Alliance (CCA), especially this case that was covered by ecoRI (CLICK HERE). So should Jim Mageau’s support for Boisclair.

Those are the negatives. Let’s look at your positive alternative

Why you should vote for Tina Spears

Here's where I stand. Photo by Will Collette

Tina Spears has served all of Charlestown and the rest of House District 36 with distinction for two terms and seeks your vote for re-election.

Tina points to these achievements from the recently completed General Assembly session:

We were able to make life in our community better by:

·       Fully funding library aid

·       Increasing education funding, especially for special education

·       Securing funding for the Charlestown Breachway rebuild

·       Passing the South Kingstown High School bond

·       Advancing legislation allowing New Shoreham to increase landing fees, manage its water district, and better structure its taxing authority. ​

I am especially proud to have sponsored and passed two bills: 

The Act on Coasts provides Rhode Island with a roadmap to strengthen coastal infrastructure in the face of rising seas. Rather than debating the causes, I am focused on preparing our communities, particularly in District 36, for the changes we are already seeing along our coastline 

The Purple Alert establishes an early alert system when individuals with disabilities go missing, making Rhode Island one of a small number of states to prioritize this vulnerable population. In partnership with advocates, families, and public safety officials, we turned a tragic situation into meaningful action that strengthens our public safety response and saves lives.​

Tina has a long record of community service, while Boisclair has none. Tina often teams up with other legislators such as state Senator Victoria Gu to boost her ability to get bills passed. She meets often with voters in her district. On top of that, she’s a genuinely kind and warm-hearted person.

Vote for Tina Spears in the September 9 Democratic primary. You must be a registered Democrat to vote in this primary.

And Tina DOES NOT protect pedos.

Foulkes campaign accuses McKee of false statements about CVS

Dan McKee Yet Again Attacks CVS, Rhode Island’s Largest Employer

Following the McKee campaign’s second ad, which was riddled with lies, Foulkes for Governor Communications Director Angelika Pellegrino issued the following statement:

“It’s been just two weeks since Dan McKee lied about Helena in his first ad, claiming she held a position she never had, that she was responsible for a merger that closed after she left CVS, that she was responsible for the other company’s decisions prior to the merger, and that she doesn’t care about Rhode Islanders’ health. This new ad doubles down on these lies and is a direct attack on Rhode Island’s largest employer. Helena is proud to have led the charge to take tobacco off the shelves at CVS, despite the large amount of revenue tobacco generated.”

“McKee can’t defend his record as governor so is lashing out at Helena because he knows voters do not think he deserves an unprecedented third term.”

The facts are:

• Helena ran the retail division. She was never the CEO of CVS, and it is absurd to suggest she merged CVS with Aetna. 
• Helena left CVS before the merger closed.
• The premium increase and changes to enrollment cited in the ad occurred before Aetna merged with CVS. 

Local Democratic party leaders endorse Foulkes and Khamsyvoravong over incumbents

In unusual move, city and town chairs reject both McKee and Matos

By Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current

The Democratic challengers for governor and lieutenant governor, Helena Buonanno Foulkes and Xay Khamsyvoravong, won the backing of local party leaders during a closed-door meeting at the Rochambeau Library in Providence Monday night.

The Rhode Island Association of Democratic City and Town Chairs did not disclose vote details from its endorsement meeting, which offers municipal party heads a chance to assert influence in state and federal primary races. 

“We are incredibly fortunate in Rhode Island to have such strong leaders serving our state and so many talented candidates willing to put themselves forward for consideration,” Erich Haslehurst, president of the association, said in a statement. “All of the candidates who sought our endorsement have demonstrated a commitment to public service and are working tirelessly to earn the trust and support of Rhode Islanders.”

The endorsement for Foulkes over Gov. Dan McKee comes as she amasses more donations and support from voters than McKee in recent public polling.

EDITOR'S NOTE: My wife Cathy served on the Association for a number of years and during several election cycles where such endorsements were made. One such event stands out, the 2016 Governor's race that came down to Gina Raimondo, Angel Tavares and Clay Pell. Cathy's insistence on supporting Clay, who had been unanimously endorsed by the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee, caused a deadlock that resulted in no endorsement for anyone for Governor that year. She came under tremendous pressure from other town chairs who had cut deals to switch their votes and wanted her to do the same. She was the only town chair who refused to sell out.   - Will Collette

Foulkes Unveils Third Component of “Believe in Rhode Island” Economic Plan: Creating & Growing Good-Paying Jobs

Proposes $150 Million Ocean Economy Investment Fund 

Helena Buonanno Foulkes shared the final part of her Believe in Rhode Island economic plan: creating good-paying jobs in Rhode Island. This plan lays out Helena’s vision to leverage Rhode Island’s unique assets that no other states can replicate: our talent and our location. 

“For too long, Rhode Island has been solving the wrong problem when it comes to our economic development strategy, and it’s driven away large employers and left our people behind. I’m excited to share the final part of my economic plan, centered around my belief in Rhode Island,” said Helena. 

“It’s time to lean into what sets Rhode Island apart from other states: our people, our colleges and universities, our world-class food and arts scene, and our 400 miles of coastline and access to the ocean. As governor, I’m going to bet on our people and lean into our strengths, and I’m excited to grow our economy together.” 

Part Three of Helena’s Believe in Rhode Island Plan includes:

Candidates for Governor talk taxes and the economy

Gubernatorial candidates Foulkes, Gregerson, Guckian, and McKee speak out at EPI Tax Policy Summit

Steve Ahlquist

Front runners Foulkes and McKee

“What I’m hearing is visionary leadership,” said Weayonnoh Nelson-Davies, executive director of the Economic Progress Institute (EPI), to the audience gathered in the Hotel Providence. “The people in this room want our leaders to be moved, to dream, and to make things possible. We want leaders who can confront affordability and energy costs, but what does that mean when we’re making policy?

“I’m really inspired by the message that we don’t want a Rhode Island where we are surviving, we want a Rhode Island where we can thrive. That is my dream. I’m so competitive. Rhode Island has been my home state since I immigrated to the United States at 16. I want us to win so bad. I want that fire in our guts. We can make everyone jealous because they don’t live in Rhode Island.

“I’m also very grateful to the candidates running for governor who showed up to not just share with us what they think,” concluded Nelson-Davies, “but to listen to what the people they might be leading tomorrow think as well.”

The Economic Progress Institute held the People’s Tax Policy Summit and Gubernatorial Candidates Reception on Wednesday. The event brought together residents, advocates, and state leaders to discuss rising living costs, tax equity, and the state’s financial future. Here’s the video:

Four candidates for governor, including Helena Foulkes, Will Gregerson, Aaron Guckian, and incumbent Daniel McKee, were provided three minutes to address those in attendance. The candidates were introduced by Chelsea Speaks, from the RICJ (Rhode Island for Community and Justice), and Joseph Ortiz, a “Tax Justice Ambassador” with ARISE (Alliance of Rhode Island Southeast Asians).

The following has been edited for clarity.

Helena Foulkes

“It’s been so fascinating to listen to all of this, and I especially love Weayonnah’s call to all of us to be bold. It’s important. It’s easy to think about the barriers, but her challenge to dream big puts us on the map.

“Four years ago, I walked into a room of about 75 carpenters, and I’ll be honest with you, I thought I knew what that conversation was going to be about: wages, job sites, material costs, etc. Then the first man stood up and started talking about childcare. He talked about what it was doing to his family. I looked around the room and watched them nod, one after another, like he was saying out loud what all of them had been experiencing for years. That moment has never left me because that man wasn’t asking for anything special. He was asking for a Rhode Island that works for families like his, and we have not given it to him.

“The cost of infant care in this state is now higher than in-state college tuition and the average rent. The people who have been running this state will tell you we have universal pre-K, but they are not the parents on the waitlist, the ones who, year after year, get a letter that says there’s no more space.

“It’s not universal if it doesn’t apply to everyone. Less than a third of low-income children are enrolled in Head Start or pre-K. That is not a gap. That is a choice the people in charge of our state government have made year after year, with a $15 billion budget at their disposal. That ends with me.

“Earlier today, I announced the Rhode Island Employer Match Childcare Fund, a $20 million pilot that brings the state and Rhode Island employers together to share the cost of childcare. Employers who invest in childcare retain their workers, grow their teams, and build stronger companies. When families win, Rhode Island wins. I’ll expand tax credits for childcare assistance, and by the end of my second term, every Rhode Island family will have access to universal pre-kindergarten, not universal in name, universal in practice. Childcare is only the beginning because the truth is the squeeze does not stop there: Rhode Island is ranked dead last in the country in new housing starts last year. There’s not a single community in this state where a family making $100,000 a year can afford to buy a home.

“I hear it everywhere I go. People who grew up here, want to stay here, and love this state are being told by the cost of living that there’s no room for them anymore. That’s wrong, and it has to stop. My Rhode Island housing program will build 20,000 new homes and apartments that Rhode Islanders can actually afford, and the wealthiest Rhode Islanders will pay for it.

“And we’re done cutting RIPTA one year and then funding it again in an election year. If people can’t afford to live here and can’t afford to get to work, it doesn’t matter how many good jobs we attract or grow. I will invest $15 million in job access transit routes connecting workers to Quonset, hospitals, and other work sites. No one should have to leave a place they love because they can’t afford to stay.

“So here’s what I’m asking of you: Do not let them tell you this is the best we can do. Do not accept taglines that say ‘affordability for all’ when our state is not affordable. Talk to your neighbors, coworkers, and the parents on the wait list. Tell them things can be different.

“Sixteen years ago, I lost my mother to cancer. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever been through, but before she died, she gathered my siblings and me together, and she said something I’ve always carried with me: ‘Take care of each other.’ That’s why I’m running for governor, because that is what Rhode Island has always been at its best: Neighbors looking out for neighbors and people who show up for each other even when it’s hard. That’s the Rhode Island I believe in, and that is the Rhode Island we’re going to build together.”

Foulkes Unveils Phase Two of “Believe in Rhode Island” Economic Plan

Focus on the basics

Helena Buonanno Foulkes shared the second component of her Believe in Rhode Island economic plan. This phase is centered around the belief that you cannot have an economic plan that ignores where people can afford to live, how they can get to work, and whether they have affordable childcare to rely on. 

“Rhode Islanders work hard. They deserve a state that works just as hard for them. With the high cost of childcare, transportation, and housing, even good-paying jobs aren’t enough to help lower costs for Rhode Islanders,” said Helena. “Today, I’m proud to announce the second part of my Believe in Rhode Island economic plan, which invests in the services that jobs depend on, like childcare and transportation, so Rhode Islanders can afford to go to work in the good-paying jobs we’re creating in the Ocean State.”

Helena’s Plan for Working Families includes:

• Childcare and Pre-K that’s accessible and affordable: A Rhode Island employer-matched childcare fund, starting with a $20 million pilot, designed to reduce the cost of care for working parents.
• Greater housing supply and lower housing costs: Helena previously announced her Rhode Home Program, a comprehensive proposal to tackle our state’s housing crisis head on by creating a billion-dollar revolving loan fund—paid for by a marginal tax increase on Rhode Islanders making over a million dollars—to spur the construction of 20,000 new homes and apartments statewide. 
• Job-access transit routes: A $15 million first-year appropriation for job-access routes connecting workers to Quonset, ProvPort, hospital campuses, and the warehouse corridor. This will include expanded transportation routes and access to jobs in the ocean economy, allowing workers throughout Rhode Island to benefit from state investments in a growing industry that depends on skilled workers to fill good-paying jobs.

 Read Helena’s Childcare & Transportation for Working Families plan here.

Newest poll shows Helena Foulkes kicking Dan McKee's butt by 20%

59% Say Rhode Island Is Headed in the Wrong Direction

A new Emerson College Polling/WPRI-TV 12 News survey of Rhode Island finds incumbent Governor Dan McKee trailing businesswoman Helena Foulkes in the Democratic primary by 20 points, 20% to 40%. Thirty-seven percent are undecided ahead of the September primary. 

“Registered Democrats support Foulkes over Governor McKee by a 12-point margin, 37% to 25%, while independent voters break more significantly for Foulkes by 32 points, 45% to 13%,” Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling, said. 

McKee is viewed unfavorably by 60% of Rhode Island voters, while 21% have a favorable view of him. Among Democratic Primary voters, 29% have a favorable view of McKee and 50% an unfavorable view. Foulkes’ favorability is split: 27% have a favorable view of her and 29% have an unfavorable view of her. Among Democratic Primary voters, 35% have a favorable view of Foulkes and 23% an unfavorable view. 

Foulkes rolls out first part of her economic plan with a $100 Million "Classroom-to-Career" proposal

Practical approach for jobs and the economy

Steve Ahlquist

Gubernatorial candidate Helena Buonanno Foulkes (Democrat) announced the first component of “Believe in Rhode Island,” her comprehensive economic plan to give “every Rhode Islander a real shot at a good-paying job, a career, and a better future.”

“Over the next few weeks, I’m going to be rolling out parts of Believe in Rhode Island, my comprehensive economic plan that I will implement as governor,” said Foulkes. 

“My plan is grounded in the belief in our people, our talent, and the incredible assets that Rhode Island has to offer. For too long, our elected leaders have been trying to tax incentive or special deal their way into economic success. Instead, we should invest in Rhode Islanders and lean into what our incredible state has to offer. I’m proud... to announce my Classroom-to-Career Initiative, the largest investment in career and technical education in the history of Rhode Island.

“Every parent I meet wants the same thing for their kid: a good, stable job and a future where they don’t have to leave Rhode Island to find a job. For too long, we’ve told young people that the only path to a successful career runs through a four-year college, but talking to the men and women in our trades, the operating engineers, the electricians, the plumbers, the iron workers, and the carpenters, they’ll tell you they have stable careers, good pay, and pride in the work they do. 

"It’s the same for our healthcare workers, our advanced manufacturers, and our marine technicians. All Rhode Island needs is more people in all of these careers, and that’s why, as governor, I’ll propose a $100 million bond to fund capital construction for career and technical education facilities at or near high schools throughout the state, so our young people can learn career track skills and start careers with Rhode Island companies straight after graduation.”

“My classroom to career plan has four key points,” said Foulkes.

Charlestown Democrats announce two events on Saturday

 

C-Town Dems News May 2026 Saturday Events Saturday, May 9th Meet and Greet with Helena Foulkes   1:30 PM – 2:30 PM Celebrated Bakery 5 Stilson Road, Richmond As part of our ongoing efforts to bring statewide candidates to South County, we'll be co-hosting this event with the Exeter, Hopkinton, Richmond and Westerly DTCs.   Stay tuned for a visit from Governor McKee in the next month. Saturday, May 9th Thanks to everyone who came out for April's Tea with Tina.   Join Tina this Saturday, from 10 AM – 12 noon at Caf Bar.   Tina will be giving updates from the State House. All are welcome, no RSVP necessary. Call for Volunteers Your Charlestown Democratic Town Committee needs you! We are looking for active participants who want to help support Democratic candidates and causes. If interested, send us a note. to info@charlestowndemocrats.org. Please consider joining us! Get our latest updates Add your email... Subscribe The Charlestown Democratic Town Committee manages the affairs of the Democratic Party in the town of Charlestown, RI subject to RI Election Law, State Party rules and its own bylaws. We meet the first Wednesday of every month at 6:00 PM at the Charlestown Police Station. Any Charlestown registered Democrat is welcome to attend. P.O. Box 1088, Charlestown RI 02813 Visit our social accounts charlestowndemocrats.org