Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi spent Sunday campaigning for the underdog candidate for governor, Helena Foulkes, in Rhode Island. The primary election is on Tuesday.
Ties to Pelosi and Guarantees
During a political rally, the top Democrat in Congress edged through the country’s smallest state while lauding Foulkes as the “full package.”
Speaker Pelosi stumps for RI gubernatorial candidate Helena Foulkes in Providence https://t.co/OkPd1Wz6Bx
— Patrick Anderson (@PatrickAnderso_) September 12, 2022
During the occasion, she praised Foulkes’s job-creating qualifications and fondly recalled Foulkes’s deceased mother, Martha Dodd Buonanno, who served as the House Speaker’s college flatmate.
According to WPRI, Pelosi stated she would not have urged Helena to run for governor of Rhode Island if she did not believe Helena would be a wonderful governor of Rhode Island and win this election.
Pelosi fought back tears as she spoke about Buonanno, one of her closest friends and the first person she met when they both enrolled in college. Buonanno passed away in 2009 from cancer.
At a pivotal point in the campaign, Foulkes’ familial ties to Pelosi have provided her with very important and much-needed political clout.
At the offices of the charitable organization Farm Fresh Rhode Island, the duo made an appearance in front of a gathering of approximately two hundred locals.
Just when you think RI couldn’t possibly get any slimier.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi To Visit Rhode Island For Helena Foulkes Rally | Providence, RI Patch https://t.co/232ai2BWko
— You’re Being Played (@risalvor) September 9, 2022
Even though she is currently trailing incumbent Governor Dan McKee and Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea in recent surveys, Foulkes has been given a sense of optimism that she can pull off an upset victory.
This is thanks to recent gaffes committed by leading powerhouses in the Democratic gubernatorial primary contest.
Opposition, Surveys, and Potential Victory
There have been reports that voting machines which Gorbea supervises in her role as secretary of state made numerous mistakes during voting. These mistakes have reportedly included displaying false names on the Spanish ballot.
These reports, therefore, have led to negative headlines about Gorbea. In the meantime, McKee has been criticized for his handling of the substantial floods that struck the state of Rhode Island the week before last.
Additionally, McKee has recently been embroiled in a dispute with CVS over an advertisement that implied the pharmacy chain played a role in the opioid crisis.
On multiple occasions in the past, Nancy Pelosi has advocated on behalf of Foulkes, a former president of CVS Health, during fundraising events. Her political action committee even transferred funds to an organization that supported Foulkes.
Foulkes asserts that she has gained steam as the contest enters its waning hours. Likewise, she has cited internal polls as a reason to be hopeful about her chances of winning.
Given Rhode Island’s heavy lean toward the Democrat Party, the primary election that will take place on Tuesday will likely determine who will win the general election later this year in November.
