Helena Foulkes shares thoughts on rematch with Governor McKee
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Helena Foulkes dropped some big news Tuesday at the Roger Williams Park Casino: she’s running for governor.
“I’m a leader who has the competence, the courage and the sense of caring to really make a difference in [residents’] lives,” Foulkes told ABC6 in a sit-down interview.
Foulkes previously ran in 2022, losing out to Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee in a very close primary, less than 4,000 votes separating her from the governor.
Now they’re set for a rematch in the 2026 Democratic primary, and ABC6 asked Foulkes what she thinks will be different this time around.
“I think more than ever people are really feeling squeezed and pressured in their lives,” she said. “I think even more so now with [President] Trump in office, I think there’s a lot of pressure on Rhode Islanders who could be losing their healthcare, as an example.”
Foulkes’s announcement came just one day after Hasbro Inc. announced it would be leaving the state for a new facility in Boston.
After serving as a high ranking executive at CVS for many years, Foulkes said she understands importance of keeping major corporations in-state.
“We really need a leader who can attract and retain companies, so that people have good paying jobs,” she said. “It’s one of the most important things that a governor can do, and I think this governor is playing politics.”
Governor McKee honed in on his opponent’s history with CVS in an ad released Tuesday, saying the company fueled the opioid crisis under her leadership.
“I think that this is what a desperate man does when he knows he’s failing the people of Rhode Island,” Foulkes said. “Under my watch, we had almost a 40% reduction in opioids.”
News Anchor Ryan Medeiros sat down with Helena Foulkes after she announced her campaign for governor. (WLNE)
ABC6 political analyst Dr. Adam Myers, an associate professor of political science at Providence College, said it made sense that the governor went right after Foulkes, after a Salve Regina University poll found his approval rating at 25% this summer.
“He received this one-two punch in the past few days,” Myers said. “Foulkes announces at the very same time that Hasbro announces they’re leaving Rhode Island.”
“He’s going to have to change the narrative about him over the course of the next year,” Myers continued. “Not just increase her negatives.”
Amidst some turbulent political times in the state, including the pause on the Revolution Wind project, the next governor will likely have to balance politics and a working relationship with the Trump Administration.
Foulkes hinted at what that relationship could look like if she is elected.
“It doesn’t really appear to me that any level of appeasement has worked for any governor,” she said. “So my approach would be we gotta do everything we can to be out in front, to be loud and defend the people of Rhode Island.”
While the primary field got a little clearer Tuesday, there are still several others who could throw their hat in the ring.
Both Attorney General Peter Neronha and House Speaker Joseph Shekarchi have hinted at runs for governor.
But Foulkes told ABC6 it doesn’t matter to her who runs, as she’ll be making her way to each city and town in the state regardless, making her own pitch to Rhode Island.
