Foulkes widens fundraising gap with McKee in Q3, has $840,000 in the bank

Potential 2026 Rhode Island gubernatorial candidate Helena Foulkes expanded her fundraising advantage over incumbent Gov. Dan McKee in the third quarter of the year.

Foulkes, who lost the 2022 Democratic primary to McKee by 2 percentage points, raised $412,164 from July 1 through Sept. 30 and now has $842,441 in the bank, campaign spokesman Jon Romano said Thursday.

That’s nearly three times the $144,232 McKee raised in the third quarter, according to his filing with the Board of Elections. McKee finished September with $505,031 in the bank.

Second-quarter fundraising between the two rivals was much closer than in the third quarter, with McKee holding a slight advantage in new donations and Foulkes a narrow edge in total cash at the end of June.

The latest campaign finance figures were reported on a day that McKee clashed with Attorney General Peter Neronha, whom McKee accused of conducting a politically motivated investigation into the ILO Group school reopening contract to benefit Foulkes.

Neronha, who mulled running for governor himself a year ago, didn’t raise any money in the third quarter, according to his filing. He still has around $65,000 in the bank.

The largest campaign warchest in the state still belongs to House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi, who raised another $73,000 from Oct. 8 to Oct. 28 and had $2.95 million in the bank. Shekarchi is unopposed for reelection to the House this year.

Senate President Dominick Ruggerio, also unopposed, raised $300 over the same period. He has $159,000 in the bank.