Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee lost his Democratic primary Wednesday to businesswoman Helena Foulkes, becoming the first sitting governor in the country since 2018 to be denied his party's nomination.

Foulkes, a former CVS executive andcurrent Costco board member,defeated McKee in a rematch of their closely fought 2022 Democratic primary, when McKee edged her by just a few percentage points.

McKee's defeat Wednesday adds another incumbent to a growing list ofofficeholders oustedduring the 2026 primary season.

McKee first became governor in 2021 after Gov.Gina Raimondoleft 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.

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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 Trumpat 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.

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

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The rematch centered in part on the candidates' competing arguments over their records and leadership.

Foulkes criticized McKee's management of state government, including his administration's handling of theWashington Bridge, which was abruptly closed over structural concerns in December 2023 and remains under reconstruction.

McKee defended his administration's record and repeatedly targeted Foulkes' tenure at CVS, suggesting she is an out-of-touch corporate executive and going after her leadership role at the company amid its controversial handling of prescription opioids.

Foulkes will advance to the November general election as a favorite against the winner of the Republican primary between Aaron Guckian, the GOP's 2022 nominee for Rhode Island lieutenant governor, and retired business executive Elaine Pelino.

Independent candidates Ken Block, Jasjit \"Jay\" Gotra and Christopher \"CD\" Reynolds will also be part of the general election action in November, according to The Rhode Island Current.

",{"_281":239,"_282":247,"_284":321},{"_27":247,"_40":322,"_287":323,"_42":324,"_251":252,"_291":-5,"_29":292,"_293":325,"_295":326,"_244":327,"_80":-5,"_82":120,"_238":328,"_281":239,"_318":341},"Rhode Island’s Democratic governor loses primary amid anger over bridge","Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee has become the first sitting governor in almost a decade to lose a primary election, with Helena Foulkes securing the Democratic nomination. Foulkes's campaign successfully capitalized on public discontent over the prolonged repair and eventual need for a complete rebuild of the Washington bridge. The race is seen as a significant indicator for the upcoming general election, with the winner of the primary holding a strong advantage.","Helena Foulkes beats incumbent Dan McKee after criticizing handling of Providence’s Washington bridge, now expected to be completed in 2028","2026-09-10T02:05:20","https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/sep/09/rhode-island-primary-results-dan-mckee","politics",{"_27":329,"_299":330,"_137":301,"_80":331,"_313":338,"_314":339,"_316":340},"ee997658a60593813bff8f3bd2485ac4ca87b34364db2bc233b0fa03632c6725","06fb4538eee740dcaa0d78469c27709f674fd580e56005fafe7db49cefa95187a6932e4e18d22ce98774ec722ae6552847be6bdc4f3c59c3d8d8248d02fa1850",[332,333,334,336,337],[244,322],[44,252],[306,335,39,308],"30023:c70c3496af43d505c85c2c54b4792401b1620ba0b7793cc8e68348d7f2a209da:78c3924a-2d47-46ed-ad7b-13d760f5640c",[310,39],[140,338,39],"c70c3496af43d505c85c2c54b4792401b1620ba0b7793cc8e68348d7f2a209da","Rhode Island’s Democratic governor loses primary amid anger over bridge\nHelena Foulkes beats incumbent Dan McKee after criticizing handling of Providence’s Washington bridge, now expected to be completed in 2028\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzp3cvxjt27s74qhy9ctz5k3ujgqd3vg96pdme8nywdq6g6le2yzw6qqjrwwrrxvunydrp95exgdph956rvety94skgdmz95cnxephxccxvdfkxscxxmuc383 ",1789022312,"Rhode Island’s Dan McKee became the first sitting governor to lose a primary in nearly a decade, bested not by a more progressive challenger or a more youthful upset but by frustration over a bridge.\nMckee lost his Democratic primary to Helena Foulkes, a former longtime executive with Rhode Island-based retail pharmacy CVS, the Associated Press said on Wednesday.\n“Tonight, we may have won the Democratic primary for governor, but let me be clear about what happens next: you will have a governor for everyone,” Foulkes said during her victory speech in the state’s capital, Providence. “Because there is so much work that needs to be done, and we need to do this together.”\nIt is rare for a sitting governor to lose a primary election. It hasn’t happened in Rhode Island since 1994.\nIn his concession speech, also in Providence, McKee promised to work with Foulkes to ensure she is elected in November.\n“This is something that I think is difficult to deal with,” McKee said, “but we just got to hold our heads high.”\nSeveral Democratic incumbents have been toppled this cycle, in a wave of anti-establishment anger that has elevated young and progressive insurgents. But this contest was different.\nOn the campaign trail, Foulkes criticized McKee’s handling of repair work on Providence’s Washington bridge, a major east-west traffic artery that carries roughly 100,000 vehicles per day. She accused him of bungling those repairs, which have dragged on longer than originally planned.\nMckee closed the bridge in December 2023, after inspectors uncovered serious structural problems. By March 2024, officials had concluded that repairing the structure was not feasible and that it would have to be rebuilt. State officials initially estimated that the bridge would be reopened to traffic this year, but the project’s completion date has since been delayed to November 2028.\nThe primary contest was something of a rematch from four years ago, when Foulkes, who is the niece of former Democratic Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, came in a close second behind McKee in a five-way contest. McKee went on to easily win the general election in 2022, after having assumed the role from then-governor Gina Raimondo, who stepped down to become Joe Biden’s US commerce secretary in 2021.\nElection prognosticators rate the seat as strongly Democratic, and therefore the winner of Wednesday’s primary is seen as having a major advantage in the November general election.\nMckee’s defeat was not the only electoral upset on Wednesday. In Providence, David Morales, a 27-year-old Democratic socialist defeated mayor Brett Smiley in the Democratic primary, ending the incumbent’s bid for a second term. Morales’s campaign was backed by progressive stalwarts, including senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and several labor unions.",{"_281":239,"_282":343,"_284":344},"cf8edee5-a635-42e7-9b7e-62359e81d46b",{"_27":343,"_40":345,"_287":346,"_42":347,"_251":348,"_291":-5,"_29":292,"_293":349,"_295":350,"_244":327,"_80":-5,"_82":121,"_238":351,"_281":239,"_318":364},"Dan McKee Loses Rhode Island Primary to Former CVS Executive","Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee has lost the Democratic primary to Helena Buonanno Foulkes, a former CVS executive. This makes McKee the first incumbent governor in years to lose renomination. Foulkes had a significant lead in polls and outspent McKee, leveraging frustration over his handling of the Washington Bridge closure.","Gov. Dan McKee (D-RI) on Wednesday lost Rhode Island’s Democratic primary to former CVS executive Helena Buonanno Foulkes, making him the first incumbent governor in years nationwide to lose renomination.","https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/AP25265642593294.jpg?resize=1200,683","2026-09-10T01:20:03","https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/state/4720098/rhode-island-dan-mckee-democratic-primary-foulkes/",{"_27":352,"_299":353,"_137":301,"_80":354,"_313":361,"_314":362,"_316":363},"cc12eced870c378e14f7d18c75ef3eb9cf333bbbf83a4c759d38d5602d296a60","fad756294c125b0cb3585d4760c8006350d97fa3d72f5d42bc696868aa12c24d5828d0e8b6398aba820fdf7fd147df95801a650146c8cbac2576ceada49a9265",[355,356,357,359,360],[244,345],[44,348],[306,358,39,308],"30023:273e8bb9fd7425c0374f8baaf3104fc54a564adcca09161692dd60c903b72e26:cf8edee5-a635-42e7-9b7e-62359e81d46b",[310,39],[140,361,39],"273e8bb9fd7425c0374f8baaf3104fc54a564adcca09161692dd60c903b72e26","Dan McKee Loses Rhode Island Primary to Former CVS Executive\nGov. Dan McKee (D-RI) on Wednesday lost Rhode Island’s Democratic primary to former CVS executive Helena Buonanno Foulkes, making him the first incumbent governor in years nationwide to lose renomination.\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzqfe73wul6ap9cqm5lza27vgyl3222e9dejsfzctf9htqeypmwt3xqqjxxe3cv4jx2ef494snvve4956ryefh95ukydm995mryve489jnsvtyxsmxy45sls3 ",1789022852,"Gov. Dan McKee (D-RI) on Wednesday lost Rhode Island’s Democratic primary to former CVS executive Helena Buonanno Foulkes, making him the first incumbent governor in years nationwide to lose renomination.\nJust before 9 p.m., Foulkes was leading McKee 62.5% to 37.5% with 80% of the votes counted, according to the Associated Press. The development comes after Foulkes placed a close second behind McKee in a five-way primary in 2022. Wednesday’s results were not unexpected, as she had held a wide lead in polls leading up to the election.\nBoth Foulkes and McKee ran as relatively mainstream Democrats, but Foulkes sought to frame herself as an outsider willing to shake up Providence.\n“I’m running against people’s belief that the status quo is maybe just as good as we’re ever going to be,” Foulkes told Politico Playbook last month as she proposed funding 20,000 new housing units with a millionaires tax. “It’s so important that people feel a sense of momentum and energy … because I think oftentimes government doesn’t feel urgent to people, and their lives are really hurting.”\nMckee, 75, appears to be the first sitting governor of Rhode Island to lose a primary in over three decades. He is the first of either party to lose a primary for reelection since at least 2018.\nMckee’s sweeping loss comes after Foulkes outspent him on the airwaves by a 3-to-1 margin, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact.\nDuring her campaign, she seized on frustration over his handling of the Washington Bridge, a commuter thoroughfare in Providence. McKee closed the westbound span in 2023 after officials discovered critical failures in the structure. The work to replace the bridge is still ongoing and is not scheduled to be finished until 2028.",[],"selectedArticleImage","rootArticleImageUrl","consensusHtml","tweets",[],"userSchema","perspectivesColumns","intro","relatedArticles",[321,344,285],"actionData","errors"]

Helena Foulkes Defeats Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee in Primary

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