R.I. Democratic Committee issues no endorsement for governor or lieutenant governor – The Boston Globe

PROVIDENCE – In an unusual move, the Rhode Island Democratic State Committee issued no endorsement for the incumbent governor and lieutenant governor on Saturday.

Incumbent Governor Daniel J. McKee received 82 votes, while his challenger, former CVS executive Helena Buonanno Foulkes, received 73 votes. There were 11 votes for no endorsement, including from the party chair, Liz Beretta-Perik.

To secure an endorsement, a candidate needs 50 percent of the votes cast plus one vote. McKee needed 84 votes to secure the endorsement, so he came up two votes short.

Party officials said they could not recall the last time the committee did not endorse an incumbent Democratic governor. Beretta-Perik later said she voted for no endorsement because she needed to stay neutral.

McKee left the Teamsters Local 251 union hall in East Providence soon after the vote, without talking to reporters. In a statement sent soon after, however, he declared the outcome “a victory for our campaign” and noted he received “the largest margin in today’s endorsement vote.”

“We will win again in September,” he said in the statement. “Rhode Islanders have a clear choice: a governor who has spent every day fighting for working families, or a corporate executive who has spent her career fighting for corporate profits in the boardroom. I know which side I’m on — and today, Rhode Island Democrats made clear they do too.”

Part of the reason McKee came up two votes short of an endorsement is that his former special adviser, Eva-Marie Mancuso, voted for Foulkes.

As she walked into the Teamsters hall, Mancuso said, “I think we need new leadership. I’m ready.”

Mancuso — a former Rhode Island Board of Education chairwoman who left the McKee administration in 2023 to take a job with Bryant University — said a big part of her decision had to do with the decision by McKee, a long-time charter school advocate, to sign a bill that places a three-year moratorium on new charter schools and permanently lowers the cap on the total number.

“That was a big, big deal,” she said. “I mean, that just shows that he’s really lost focus of what the state needs.”

When McKee beat Foulkes in the 2022 Democratic primary, McKee was filmed telling Mancuso to hang up on Foulkes as he was prepared to deliver his victory speech. On Saturday, Mancuso said, “I took her call.”

The Democratic committee also did not endorse a candidate for Lieutenant Governor. Out of 162 votes, incumbent Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos received just 55 votes, while former Newport mayor Xay Khamsyvoravong received 71. Providence City Council member Sue AnderBois received 15 votes, and former state senator Cynthia Coyne got 13. Eight people voted for no endorsement.

The committee did not endorse anyone in the race to replace term-limited Attorney General Peter F. Neronha.

State Representative Joseph J. Solomon Jr. received 73 votes, former state Cannabis Control Commission chairwoman Kim Ahern received 42 votes, former attorney general policy chief Keith Hoffman received 22 votes, and state Representative Jason Knight received 12 votes, while 10 voted for no endorsement.

A total of 159 committee members voted, so 80 votes were needed to secure the endorsement.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.

Edward Fitzpatrick can be reached at edward.fitzpatrick@globe.com. Follow him @FitzProv.