Nearly half of likely Democratic voters still aren’t sure who they’d choose in Rhode Island’s 2026 gubernatorial primary, according to the latest Ocean State Poll conducted by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center.
A sizable 42% of Democratic primary voters considered themselves “undecided” in the survey released Monday. But former CVS executive Helena Buonanno Foulkes holds a slight, early lead in a hypothetical Democratic primary with Rhode Island House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi and incumbent Gov. Dan McKee.
Of the 359 respondents who are likely to hit the polls in the Democratic primary slated for September 2026, 29% said they would back Foulkes.
Shekarchi, who has not publicly committed to a run but has expressed interest in media interviews, secured 13% of support from the surveyed respondents.
Limping along with slightly lower polling numbers is McKee with support from only 11% of primary voters — his latest dismal showing in a string of polls, especially in concert with the poll’s other numbers for McKee, which demonstrate a broad and more diffuse dissatisfaction with his leadership both within and across party lines.
“McKee is very unpopular among likely Democratic primary voters and suffers from low job approval among Rhode Islanders overall,” the survey’s introduction notes.
McKee’s 11% share of potential voter support is a drop from the 19% he garnered in the survey center’s previous poll released in September.
The current governor was also viewed less favorably by survey respondents than his two potential opponents, with only 15% of Democratic primary voters saying they approved of him as a gubernatorial candidate. Another 54% said they disapproved, while 22% of respondents were neutral about McKee.
As for McKee’s current performance, only 21% of respondents expressed satisfaction, while another 72% disapproved. The report notes that McKee’s approval has gone “relatively unchanged” since the September poll.
McKee’s net favorability — defined as the percentage of respondents with a favorable opinion minus those with an unfavorable opinion — was the lowest of all three potential candidates, at -39.
Shekarchi’s net favorability was +5 and Foulkes’ was +2.
The poll also asks respondents to identify their ideological leanings. McKee saw the lowest amounts of favorability in the primary — 3% — from both “socialists” and “conservatives/libertarians,” as the poll labels them. His campaign’s highest level of support came from “moderate” primary voters, at 27%, followed by “progressive” voters at 11%.
McKee’s campaign spokesperson Christina Freundlich said in an emailed statement Tuesday, “Rhode Islanders don’t govern by polls, and neither does Governor McKee.”
“While Donald Trump continues to tank our economy and gut Rhode Islanders’ healthcare, Governor McKee is doing the job — lowering school absences, reducing overdose deaths, and driving real economic growth,” Freundlich said. “Polls come and go, but Governor McKee is focused on delivering for Rhode Island families.”
Less in the thick of the fray was Shekarchi, who respondents viewed generously, as he had the lowest percentage — only 16% — of respondents who viewed him unfavorably. But the House speaker was also the least known to respondents, with 38% saying they don’t know enough about him. Another 21% of potential voters said they viewed Shekarchi favorably.
Shekarchi, in an emailed statement Monday, did not explicitly affirm his candidacy but said that the race remains “wide open even though the two announced candidates have previously run statewide.”
“In 2026, I will continue bringing people together to address affordability in health care, housing, cost of living, and attracting and retaining good jobs in Rhode Island,” Shekarchi wrote.
Foulkes attracted almost equal shares of like, dislike and disinterest: 23% viewed her favorably, 21% unfavorably, 28% were neutral, and 27% were unsure what to think of her.
Jon Romano, a spokesperson for the Foulkes campaign, wrote in a Tuesday statement that the poll “confirms what Helena already knows from countless conversations across our state: people are hurting, they’re being priced out of the lives they’ve built, and our leaders aren’t stepping up.”
The numbers didn’t change drastically when pollsters asked respondents to decide based on a race with only two of the three candidates. Without Foulkes in the running, 29% of potential voters said they would go for Shekarchi, while McKee would inch up to 15%. But most voters would remain undecided at 50% — numbers not dissimilar from scenarios in which either McKee or Shekarchi exited the race, with more than 40% undecided voters in both circumstances, according to the poll.
Bridge and hospital concerns inform McKee numbers
Pollsters also revisited the Washington Bridge closure which continues to darken people’s perceptions of the McKee administration.
Among respondents, 68% rated the McKee administration’s public communications about the bridge issue as “poor” or “very poor.” Another 21% rated the McKee administration’s performance as “fair” and only 6% called it “good” and 1% “very good.”
Another ongoing issue examined by pollsters was the protracted sale process of two of the state’s safety net hospitals: Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in North Providence and Roger Williams Medical Center in Providence. Current owner Prospect Medical Holdings has not been able to finalize the sale process first approved in 2024 and is now threatening to close the two facilities.
While only about 7% of respondents reported that they or a family member used either hospital in the past year, respondents were still keen on the idea of state intervention, with 67% saying state officials should “definitely” or “probably” intervene to keep Roger Williams open. Another 25% were not in favor of state intervention, and said the state should “definitely” or “probably” not get involved.
Numbers were similar in the case of Fatima, with 67% in favor of state intervention and 27% opposed.
This story was originally published by the Rhode Island Current.
