In a change of course, Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee’s campaign said Monday that he will take part in a debate later this week.
A business-backed policy group, The Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council, is staging the forum at 12:30 pm Thursday at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick.
According to RIPEC, the five major Democratic and one Republican candidates for governor agreed to participate, although McKee recently indicated he was pulling out and would not take part in debates until after the June filing deadline.
The governor’s office last week said McKee’s would be unavailable due to plans to celebrate his wedding anniversary out of town.
Campaign manager Brexton Isaacs did not respond when asked why McKee changed course so he could participate in the debate,
Now, however, McKee’s campaign says the governor will take part in the Thursday debate to discuss his record and his vision for the future of Rhode Island. Also participating are Republican Ashley Kalus and Democrats Matt Brown, Helena Buonnano Foulkes, Nellie Gorbea and Luis Daniel Munoz.
Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis@ripr.org. Follow him on Twitter @IanDon. Sign up here for his free weekly RI politics newsletter.
