Daniel J. McKee (born June 16,1951) is an American politician and businessman serving as the 76th governor of Rhode Island since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party,he also served as Rhode Island's 69th lieutenant governor from 2015 to 2021.
Born in Cumberland,Rhode Island,McKee received his undergraduate degree from Assumption College and received his master's degree from the Harvard Kennedy School. He served on the Cumberlandtown council from 1992 to 1998 and as mayor of Cumberland twice,from 2000 to 2004 and from 2006 until 2014.[1] McKee was elected lieutenant governor in 2014 and reelected in 2018. When Governor Gina Raimondo resigned upon being confirmed as United States Secretary of Commerce in 2021,McKee ascended to the governorship.[2] He was elected to a full term in 2022.
McKee was an officer of McKee Brothers,a heating,air conditioning,and home heating oil delivery business his grandfather founded.[4] He also ran a health and fitness business for more than 30 years.[4]
McKee has been a member of the board of directors of the Boys and Girls Club of Cumberland-Lincoln for over 25 years,serving as past president of the executive board and chair of the endowment committee.[citation needed]
In February 2021,McKee began to form a COVID-19 advisory board.[10] He had criticized the Raimondo administration over a slow COVID-19 vaccine rollout.[11]
In 2021,during the COVID-19 pandemic in Rhode Island,McKee said his main priority was to advance COVID-19 vaccine rollout and contain the outbreak.[13] By July 4,Rhode Island had fully vaccinated over 633,000 people,70% of its eligible adult population.[14] It was the fifth state to reach that milestone.[14] Also in July,McKee terminated the state mask mandate,but extended the COVID-19 emergency declaration to August 6,citing the prevalence of the highly transmissible Delta variant.[15] On February 8,2022,McKee announced that Rhode Island would lift mask mandates as the infection rate fell.[citation needed]
In September 2021,McKee signed legislation that reclassified simple possession of 10 grams or less of certain controlled substances[which?] as a misdemeanor rather than a felony. He signed the legislation at Project Weber/RENEW's office.[16]
On February 22,2022,McKee announced that he was running for reelection to a full four-year term.[17] He won the September 13 Democratic primary,defeating four challengers in a close race. He defeated Republican nominee Ashley Kalus in the general election.[18]
As governor,McKee's approval rating has continuously dropped,and he is now one of the nation's least popular governors.[19]
McKee supports gun control and has said he would support an "assault weapons" ban.[20]
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