How Close Is The Race For RI Governor? Neck And Neck, Polls Say

RHODE ISLAND — It's primary election day in Rhode Island, which means by the end of today, voters will know who has won the Democratic primary in the race for Rhode Island's governor.

Over $10 million has been spent in the race, and, just last week, one of the most influential politicians in the country spent a Sunday in the Ocean State endorsing a candidate polls expect to finish no higher than third.

For those who've been waiting until today to get up to speed on the race, there are five Democrats running in the primary, with Gov. Dan McKee, Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea, former CVS executive Helena Foulkes as the trio most likely to win, according to polling data. Also in the running are Luis Daniel Munoz and Matt Brown.

Most recently, a Fleming and Associates, Roger Williams and WPRI poll released in August saw 28 percent of people surveyed going with McKee, while 25 percent chose Gorbea and 14 percent chose Foulkes. However, that was a change from polls in the months prior, which saw Gorbea with the lead.

According to a Suffolk University and Boston Globe poll released in June saw McKee take home just 20 percent of the selections from those surveyed, while Gorbea sat at 24 percent.

Both of these polls, it should be noted, came before United States Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi entered the fold, endorsing Helena Foulkes during a visit to Providence on Sunday. It's yet to be recorded how much influence that could have on the run but, undoubtedly, the former CVS executive is making a late push.

Don't trust the polls? How about the betting markets?

A service called PredictIt allows interested bettors to legitimately place money on candidates for races like Rhode Island governor. It's real, but it's not equivalent to polling data. The Boston Globe's Dan McGowan best compared it to NFL futures bets, like choosing the winner of the Super Bowl during the season.

According to their metric, which lists candidate values as cents on the dollar, McKee is highly favored at 77 cents, whereas Gorbea sits at 18 cents and Foulkes at nine. Again, it's not the same as polling data, but an interesting market nonetheless.

Want to learn more about the 2022 primary? Read Patch's guide to Rhode Island here: Rhode Island 2022 Primary Voter Guide: Key Races, How To Vote