by Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current
February 3, 2026
After more than a year of hinting at a possible gubernatorial run, House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi released three paragraphs to explain why he decided against it.
“The best way for me to serve the people of Rhode Island is to continue my work as Speaker of the House,” the Warwick Democrat said in a statement Tuesday afternoon. “My energy will remain focused on crafting a budget that supports Rhode Islanders and finding solutions for critical issues like health care, hospitals and housing.”
Speaking to reporters at his State Office office 30 minutes later, Shekarchi said the decision was both personal and political, citing his obligations as a private practice attorney and his father, who will turn 100 on Feb, 24, as examples of the former.
He toyed with a run as recently as a week ago, fresh off a fundraiser at The Crowne Plaza in Warwick.
“If you asked me that day, I was probably leaning more toward running,” Shekarchi told reporters. “That was an emotional decision. I had to make a logical decision.”
But, Shekarchi acknowledged that the already heated battle between Gov. Dan McKee and Helena Buonanno Foulkes influenced his conclusion not to enter the race.
The rival candidates first faced off in 2022, with Foulkes losing to McKee in the four-way Democratic primary by 3 percentage points. Even before launching her 2026 campaign, Foulkes, a former CVS executive, blasted McKee for his handling of the Washington Bridge crisis and loss of major employer Hasbro Inc. McKee in turn continues to link Foulkes to the opioid crisis, which a Department of Justice lawsuit alleges was perpetuated by her former employer.
Shekarchi has largely stayed out of the fray, yet continues to lead all state officeholders and candidates in fundraising. As of Dec. 31, he had more than $4.3 million cash on hand after raising $230,000 in the final three months of the year, according to the report filed with the Rhode Island Board of Elections on Monday.
A land use and zoning attorney, Shekarchi, 63, was first elected to the Rhode Island General Assembly in 2012 to represent Warwick’s District 23, and ascended to the powerful speaker role in November 2020. Now in his sixth year as the most influential lawmaker on Smith Hill, he has garnered a reputation among lawmakers and government watchdogs for inclusive and transparent leadership — the “mediator of Rhode Island” according to the headline of a cover story profile published in January in Rhode Island Monthly.
He plans to seek another term as state representative later this year, again aspiring to the speaker position if chosen by his Democratic colleagues. But, Shekarchi wasn’t ruling out a run for higher office, including a U.S. Senate seat, later.
“I don’t get up every day and shave in the mirror and say I want to be U.S. Senator,” Shekarchi told reporters Tuesday. “I enjoy being a public servant. I don’t rule out any opportunity to serve in any other capacity.”
His name is well known within the Rhode Island State House, but not among average voters. A preliminary poll published in September by the University of New Hampshire shows more than half of prospective Democratic voters don’t know enough about Shekarchi to have an opinion on whether he should run for governor. The same UNH poll showed Shekarchi and McKee with the same 13% favorability rating, slightly trailing Foulkes’ 16% approval rating, but within the margin of error.
Commentators and political analysts viewed Shekarchi as a potential threat to McKee, with both officeholders vying for the influential support of state labor unions.
And internal polling by Shekarchi’s campaign team suggested “very strong” name recognition and favorability among voters, he said Tuesday. He declined to share the internal polling numbers when asked by reporters.
Shekarchi told the governor his decision when the two met at Phantom Farms in Cumberland on Saturday. He notified Foulkes by phone Monday night, he said. He shared positive assessments of both candidates, deferring an endorsement until after the legislative session ends in June.
Foulkes released a statement 20 minutes after Shekarchi went public with his decision, noting “he has dedicated his career to building a stronger Rhode Island.”
“As Speaker, he has worked to advance affordable housing, strengthen our economy, and improve healthcare access for Rhode Islanders,” Foulkes said. “He has brought a spirit of collegiality and collaboration to the State House that has made us all more effective. I’m grateful for his friendship and continued service to the state we all love, and I look forward to working with him as governor.”
McKee also expressed appreciation for Shekarchi’s work while taking another swipe at Foulkes in a campaign statement Tuesday.
“The race is now set, and Rhode Islanders are now faced with a clear choice: someone who understands the challenges Rhode Islanders are facing everyday and will continue to fight to lower costs and make life a bit more easier, or a boardroom millionaire like Helena Foulkes’ who, under her failed leadership, fueled the opioid crisis by caring more about her wallet size and in turn, destroyed the lives and families of thousands of Rhode Islanders in her path,” McKee said. “I’m the only Democrat in this race who has always fought to make life easier, safer and more secure for Rhode Islanders. I look forward to that work in the months ahead, and to defeating Helena Foulkes in the fall.”
<h4>McKee touts turnaround poll numbers </h4>While McKee has been dogged by low approval ratings among voters for more than a year, his popularity appears to be on the rise according to a new Morning Consult survey released Monday. Just under half of voters surveyed approved of McKee, up from four in 10 three months prior. Disapproval for McKee also dipped from 44% in the third quarter of 2023 to 36% in the fourth quarter, according to the Morning Consult tracker of state governors.
When Morning Consult last updated its quarterly survey of gubernatorial approval ratings, McKee had the lowest favorability of any governor nationwide.
McKee’s campaign touted the ratings boost alongside his fourth-quarter donation haul as evidence of this support among voters.
“Rhode Islanders are responding to Governor McKee’s steady leadership and his relentless focus on lowering costs, protecting Rhode Islanders and standing up to Donald Trump’s reckless administration,” Christina Freundlich, a campaign spokesperson, said in a statement Tuesday.
The Morning Consult survey did not include any detail on the change in gubernatorial approval ratings.
Foulkes’ campaign downplayed the turnaround, noting that McKee’s approval still remains below the 50% mark.
“McKee is a failed governor,” Angelika Pelligrino, Foulkes’ campaign spokesperson, said in a statement Tuesday. Pelligrino accused McKee of “failing to take accountability” for problems such as the bridge, Habro’s exodus and chronic underfunding of the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority. “He is an incumbent governor bragging about having a sub-50% approval rating while asking for an unprecedented third term.”
Foulkes continues to lead McKee in fundraising, bringing in more than twice the fourth-quarter donations of the sitting governor.
Gregory Stevens, who owns the trio of local Pat’s Italian Restaurants, has also filed paperwork in December to run as a Democrat in the gubernatorial race.
Three Republicans will face off in their own gubernatorial primary in September as well: Aaron Guckian, an aide to former Gov. Don Carcieri; Robert Raimondo, who claims to be a distant cousin of Gov. Gina Raimondo; and retired comedian Elaine Pelino.
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- 3:52 pmUpdated to include additional comments from House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi and Gov. Dan McKee.
- 3:51 pmStatement from Helena Buonanno Foulkes added.
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