October 7, 2026
Republican gubernatorial candidate Aaron Guckian has $7,000 cash on hand as of Oct. 5, 2026, according to his most recent campaign finance report filed with the Rhode Island Board of Elections. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)
Trailing in the polls and facing public pressure to drop out, Republican gubernatorial candidate Aaron Guckian has just over $7,000 in his campaign account in the final sprint toward the Nov. 3 general election, according to information filed with the Rhode Island Board of Elections late Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Guckian’s two opponents, Democrat Helena Buonanno Foulkes and independent Ken Block, each have more than $200,000 cash on hand, having exponentially outraised and outspent Guckian, according to their campaign finance reports.
Candidates who participated in the Sept. 9 primary elections filed reports reflecting donations and expenditure from Sept. 2 to Oct. 5. Reports from candidates only participating in the Nov. 3 general election included financial activity from July 1 to Oct. 5. Both set s of reports were due by midnight on Oct. 6.
News of Guckian’s cash flow woes comes one week after he missed two gubernatorial forums to take a last-minute trip to Florida to boost his flailing campaign. Event headliners Eric and Lara Trump never showed up for the Oct. 1 private fundraiser in West Palm Beach. And mingling with deep-pocketed donors yielded not a single check for Guckian as of the Oct. 5 state campaign finance reporting period.
Also absent from his campaign accounting: travel expenses, including the private plane he took from Delaware to Florida on Sept. 30.
Guckian’s campaign plans to submit an addendum to the report detailing the in-kind donations related to his travel costs, Mike Fahey, a campaign spokesperson, confirmed Wednesday. Fahey did not know when the update would be submitted.
Guckian, an aide to former Gov. Don Carcieri and the previous head of the Rhode Island Dental Association, took a commercial flight from President Donald J. Trump International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York Friday, Fahey said. A rental car snafu delayed his arrival in Rhode Island until late Friday night, causing him to miss a forum hosted by the Senior Agenda Coalition of Rhode Island, the Providence Journal reported. Guckian also skipped a Sept. 30 forum at Roger Williams University School of Law hosted by the League of Women Voters and the Women’s Fund of Rhode Island due to the trip, cancelling the morning of the event.
“These were truly scheduling oversights,” Fahey said.
Public pressure has mounted for Guckian to drop out following an internal poll by Block’s campaign showing Block leading Foulkes in a two-way race.
Fahey reiterated Wednesday that Guckian intends to remain in the race.
Guckian raised under $7,000 in the 33-day period that ended Oct. 5, and spent a little over $12,000. His balance includes a total of $10,500 in personal loans to his campaign earlier this year.
Fahey was confident Guckian’s fundraising efforts would pay off. Fahey said the Florida trip was the “start of some very important conversations” but declined to name the groups or donors the campaign was speaking to.
“I don’t think we’re going to let one campaign finance report tell the whole story,” Fahey said. “We still have several weeks to Election Day.”
Guckian’s campaign has no fundraising events scheduled for the next two weeks, Fahey confirmed.
After spending more than $5 million leading up her primary against Gov. Dan McKee, Foulkes has begun to replenish her reserves, raising more than $380,000 from individuals and political action committees while spending more than $545,000 in the 33-day period that ended Oct. 5. Foulkes, a former CVS executive, also received more than $125,000 in in-kind donations from the Rhode Island Democratic State Committee, and a $500,000 independent expenditure from the Democratic Governors Association.
Foulkes’ report also includes $6,750 in combined refunds to seven donors who gave more than the $2,000 limit allowed per candidate per calendar year. The excess donations, first reported by GoLocalProv, drew rebukes from Guckian and Block. The state elections board does not intend to impose fines as long as Foulkes’ campaign returns the donations, spokesperson Christopher Hunter confirmed.
Foulkes’ account balance includes a $1.8 million loan balance from money she contributed to her 2022 gubernatorial primary campaign.
While Guckian has struggled to rally Rhode Island Republicans around his campaign after narrowly defeating Elaine Pelino in the GOP primary, Foulkes saw a surge of support from influential Democratic leaders. The 80,000-member Rhode Island AFL-CIO, which declined to endorse in the primary, threw its weight behind Foulkes for the general election, with unanimous support from the 200 union delegates who voted on Tuesday.
Also Tuesday, the Rhode Island Democratic Party held a fundraising “Unity Dinner” for candidates, including Foulkes, with tickets ranging from $150 to $2,500 per person. The event was held after the period covered by the latest state campaign reports.
Unlike his opponents, Block did not have to win a primary to advance to the Nov. 3 ballot, leaving him with more than $263,000 cash on hand as of Oct. 5. Block, a software engineer and small business owner, raised just over $63,000 in individual donations during the three-month reporting period. His balance was boosted with a $190,000 personal loan. He spent just over $80,000.
Including personal loans from his two previous gubernatorial runs in 2010 and 2014, Block has a $1.2 million outstanding loan balance.
“I’m confident that we have the resources to win,” Block said in a statement Wednesday.
Foulkes’ campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The three gubernatorial candidates will meet for a live debate in the lobby of the Providence Performing Arts Center, hosted by NBC 10, at 7 p.m. Wednesday
The race also includes two other independent candidates, Jay Gotra and C.D. Reynolds. Gotra, a former solar sales company owner now facing allegations of predatory and deceptive sales tactics from the Rhode Island Attorney General’s office, had just over $1,500 cash on hand, raising more than $2,800 and spending $2,400, according to his report. The campaign report for Reynolds, a waiter at The Capital Grille, was not available as of Wednesday morning.
Reynolds has not submitted any other mandatory campaign reports since July 2024. Reached by phone Wednesday morning, Reynolds said he was “working on it.”
Early voting begins on Oct. 14.
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Courtesy of Rhode Island Current
