Daniel James McKee (born June 16, 1951) is an American businessman and politician serving as the 76th

governor of Rhode Island The governor of Rhode Island is the head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, o ...

since March 2021. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, he served as Rhode Island's 69th

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

from 2015 to 2021. Born in Cumberland, Rhode Island, McKee received his undergraduate degree from Assumption College and his Master's degree from

Harvard Kennedy School The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

. He served on the

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

town council A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities. Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions. Republic of Ireland Town Councils in the Republic of Ireland were the second ti ...

from 1992 to 1998 and as mayor of Cumberland twice, from 2000 to 2004 and from 2006 until 2014. McKee was elected lieutenant governor in 2014. When Governor

Gina Raimondo Gina Marie Raimondo (; born May 17, 1971) is an American politician, lawyer, and venture capitalist who has served as the 40th United States Secretary of Commerce since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as the 75th go ...

resigned upon being confirmed as

United States Secretary of Commerce The United States secretary of commerce (SecCom) is the head of the United States Department of Commerce. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to commerce. The secretary rep ...

in 2021, McKee ascended to the governorship.

Early life

McKee's family has owned and operated small businesses in northern Rhode Island for over 100 years. He is a practicing Roman Catholic. After graduating from Cumberland High School, McKee received a Bachelor of Arts in

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

and

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

from Assumption College in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

in 1973. He earned a

Master of Public Administration The Master of Public Administration (M.P.Adm., M.P.A., or MPA) is a specialized higher professional post graduate degree in public administration, similar/ equivalent to the Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the issues of ...

from the

in 2005.

Early career

McKee was an officer of McKee Brothers, a heating, air conditioning, and home heating oil delivery business his grandfather founded. He also ran a health and fitness business for more than 30 years. During his time on the

Cumberland, Rhode Island Cumberland is the northeasternmost town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States, first settled in 1635 and incorporated in 1746. The population was 36,405 at the 2020 census, making it the seventh-largest municipality and the largest t ...

Town Council (1992–1998), McKee was also a basketball coach, coaching groups of boys and girls at all levels, culminating in two State AAU Basketball Champions in 1998 and 2000. McKee served six terms as Cumberland's mayor. He worked with state and federal officials in the aftermath of Cumberland's historic spring flooding to minimize the damage and steered Cumberland through Rhode Island's unprecedented economic downturn. In 2008, McKee worked with mayors across the state to pass a law allowing the creation of new, regional, mayor-governed and highly autonomous public schools known as “Mayoral Academies.” In 2009 and 2010, he again helped organize mayors and education advocates to enact a new education funding policy. McKee has been a member of the board of directors of the

Boys and Girls Club Boys & Girls Club may refer to: * Boys & Girls Clubs of America * Boys & Girls Clubs of Canada * Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Clubs, Bronx, United States * Essex Boys and Girls Clubs, in Essex and East London, England * The Boys' and Girls' Clubs A ...

of Cumberland-Lincoln for over 25 years, serving as past president of the executive board and chair of the endowment committee.

Lieutenant governor of Rhode Island

In 2013, McKee announced his candidacy for

Rhode island lieutenant governor The current lieutenant governor of Rhode Island is Sabina Matos, who was sworn in on April 14, 2021, after Daniel McKee succeeded to the office of governor. The first lieutenant governor was George Brown. In Rhode Island, the lieutenant gove ...

, defeating

Secretary of State of Rhode Island The secretary of state of Rhode Island is an elected office in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. As of 2015, the current secretary of state is Nellie Gorbea. The Rhode Island Department of State or is composed of five separate divisions: *The Ele ...

Ralph Mollis Angelo Ralph Mollis (born May 24, 1961) is an American politician who served as the Secretary of State of Rhode Island from 2007 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he assumed office on January 1, 2007. He was reelected to a second term ...

and State Representative

Frank Ferri Frank G. Ferri (born February 2, 1954) is an American politician who was a Democratic member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives, representing the 22nd district from October 24, 2007 until January 6, 2015. A Rhode Island native, Ferr ...

in the Democratic primary. In the general election, he defeated

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Catherine Terry Taylor, a legislative aide and speechwriter for U.S. Senators

John Chafee John Lester Hubbard Chafee ( ; October 22, 1922 – October 24, 1999) was an American politician and officer in the United States Marine Corps. A member of the Republican Party (United States), he served as the 66th Governor of Rhode Island, as ...

and

Lincoln Chafee Lincoln Davenport Chafee ( ; born March 26, 1953) is an American politician. He was mayor of Warwick, Rhode Island from 1993 to 1999, a United States Senator from 1999 to 2007, and the 74th Governor of Rhode Island from 2011 to 2015. He was a m ...

, with 54.3% of the vote. He was reelected in 2018. On January 7, 2021, President-elect Joe Biden selected Rhode Island Governor

Secretary of Commerce The United States secretary of commerce (SecCom) is the head of the United States Department of Commerce. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to commerce. The secretary rep ...

. Since McKee was next in line of succession, he would become governor once Raimondo was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

. She was confirmed on March 2, 2021, and submitted her resignation as governor shortly after. In February 2021, McKee began to form a

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

advisory board. He had criticized the Raimondo administration over a slow COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

Governor of Rhode Island

RI Governor Daniel McKee and wife Susal McKee at the 2021 Bristol Fourth of July Parade

McKee was sworn in as the 76th

on March 2, 2021. On February 22, 2022, McKee announced that he was running for reelection to a full four-year term. He won the September 13 Democratic primary, defeating four challengers in a close race. He defeated Republican nominee Ashley Kalus in the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

COVID-19

McKee said his main priority was to advance COVID-19 vaccine rollout and contain the

COVID-19 pandemic in Rhode Island The COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. state of Rhode Island is part of an ongoing worldwide viral pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (), a novel infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). As of August 18, 202 ...

. By July 4, Rhode Island had fully vaccinated over 633,000 people, representing 70% of its eligible adult population. It was the fifth state to reach that milestone. Also in July, McKee terminated the state mask mandate but extended the COVID-19 emergency declaration to August 6, citing the prevalence of the

delta variant The Delta variant (B.1.617.2) was a variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. It was first detected in India in late 2020. The Delta variant was named on 31 May 2021 and had spread to over 179 countries by 22 November 2021. The ...

Electoral history

Mayor of Cumberland

Lieutenant Governor

Governor

References

External links

Governor Dan McKee
official government website
McKee for Governor
campaign website * , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:McKee, Daniel 1951 births 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American politicians Assumption University (Worcester) alumni Businesspeople from Rhode Island Democratic Party governors of Rhode Island Harvard Kennedy School alumni Lieutenant Governors of Rhode Island Living people Mayors of places in Rhode Island People from Cumberland, Rhode Island Rhode Island city council members