Matt Shinners
PROVIDENCE, R.I.—When Ken Block launched his campaign for governor, he told the Rhode Island Current that he was running as an independent because "[m]y flavor of politics doesn’t align well with either political party. Political parties by definition imply a healthy dose of partisanship—I am a problem solver, a manager, and the problems that Rhode Island suffers from aren’t problems that partisanship can address.”
He also said that avoiding a "messy, expense, and damaging" primary process was a strategic factor. Instead, Block collected the necessary signatures to secure his line, and then he waited.
That wait ended Wednesday night after a relatively messy, expensive, and damaging primary that led to an unexpected outcome: the defeat of incumbent Gov. Dan Mckee by Helena Foulkes for the Democratic nomination. Foulkes challenged Mckee in 2022, and the different outcome is being attributed to frustration with housing costs and frustration over a project involving the Washington Bridge.
On the Republican side, the race still hasn't been called because of a separation between candidates of only 279 votes. Currently, Aaron Guckian, who positioned himself as a moderate during the primary, leads Elaine Pelino, who has aligned herself with President Trump's MAGA movement.
Two other independent candidates—Jasjit Gotra and C.D. Reynolds—will also appear on the November ballot.
As we wrote in July, Block has spent nearly two decades attacking the two-party system from inside it, outside it, and around it. He founded the Moderate Party of Rhode Island and ran as its gubernatorial candidate in 2010, finishing fourth with 6.5% in the race that put independent Lincoln Chafee (I) in office, then lost the 2014 Republican gubernatorial primary to Allan Fung by 10 points.
Block's platform deals with a variety of Rhode Island-specific issues, from housing to transportation, truck tolls, cost of living, and budgeting. The most fleshed-out section of his platform, however, deals with social and cultural issues, but not as you might expect. Rather than wading into the culture wars, Block cites them as a way of avoiding real governance, promising to prioritize "effective governance over social disputes."
He pledges, as governor, to focus on problem solving rather than ideology.
The only general-election polling released so far is from months ago, and it includes incumbent Mckee, who has now been eliminated from contention. In a state where a majority of registered voters have already left both parties, and where there's no incumbent on the ballot, Block's long commitment to a new path for Rhode Island might just appeal to an electorate that's clearly clamoring for change.