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There are less than two weeks left in Rhode Island's under-the-radar gubernatorial primary and tensions are rising.
Incumbent Democratic Gov. Dan McKee is facing his party's voters for the first time since former Gov. Gina Raimondo's elevation to President Joe Biden's cabinet move him into the governor's mansion. But he's facing a crowded field of rivals, including Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea and former CVS executive Helena Foulkes.
McKee and Gorbea have clashed in recent ads, with Foulkes trying to leverage the split to pitch herself as the candidate not caught up in the fray.
Gorbea's campaign ran an ad highlighting March news of an investigation into government contracts (McKee has said his administration has cooperated with the probe and is "comfortable with the decisions" that led to the education contract in question).
"Governor McKee has returned us to the pay to play politics that hold us back. Rhode Island can be better," the narrator says before touting Gorbea.
McKee's campaign pushed back in an ad of their own by noting one of the stories that Gorbea's ad relied on citing the conservative-leaning National Review. The ad accuses Gorbea’s campaign of “getting desperate,” and “using extreme MAGA Republicans to make false attacks.”
Looking to distance herself from the fray, Foulkes is up with a new spot this week that uses footage from both ads.
"You’ve seen the attacks, One politician going after the other. I’m Helena Foulkes. If you elect me governor, I’ll attack our problems," she says.
A recent Roger Williams University/WPRI 12 telephone poll from mid August found McKee with a slight lead over the pack with 28% of support from likely primary voters, followed by Gorbea at 25% and Foulkes at 14%. No other candidate hit double-digits and 21% were undecided.