By Janine L. Weisman | Editor-in-Chief
Good Friday morning!
Bunny Races begin at 10 a.m. today in the Show Barn at the Washington County Fair in Richmond. But the real action though is at 5 p.m. That’s when the Rooster Crowing Contest begins. The bird that crows the most times in five minutes is the winner.
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High tide in Portsmouth is at 9:46 a.m. and 10:08 p.m. Low tide is at 3:16 p.m. Sunset is at 7:46 p.m.
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Gov. Dan McKee ceremonially signs legislation authorizing the a special commemorative Dominican Heritage Charity Plate at 3 p.m. at the Juan Pablo Duarte Monument at Roger Williams Park in Providence at the Broad Street entrance. Festivities begin at 2:30 p.m. The special license plate will feature the official Dominican national coat of arms, the map of the island, and its flag’s red, white and blue colors.
Gov. Dan McKee, right, gestures while making a point in the first television debate with Democratic challenger Helena Buonanno Foulkes in the lobby of the Providence Performing Arts Center Wednesday night, Aug. 12, 2026. (Screenshot/WJAR)
By Nancy Lavin
Gov. Dan McKee and his challenger, Helena Buonanno Foulkes, still managed to infuse their usual talking points with fresh insults during their first TV debate organized by NBC10 and Coastal ABC and taped at the Providence Performing Arts Center on Wednesday night.“Uninformed and unapologetic,” was how McKee painted his opponent. Foulkes called McKee a “desperate man.”
Rep. Joe Solomon Jr., a Democratic candidate running to be Rhode Island’s next attorney general, debuted his first ad of the primary on Aug. 12, 2026 (Screenshot/Joe Solomon Democrat for Attorney General)
By Alexander Castro
Democratic attorney general candidate Joe Solomon Jr. has released his campaign’s first television ad as part of a six-figure shopping spree across broadcast television, cable and digital platforms. The 30-second spot launches a week before early voting begins for the Sept. 9 primary and makes Solomon the last of the four Democrats in the race to hit the airwaves.
Providence Democratic Sen. Tiara Mack was among those who sponsored legislation that seeks to protect people from immigration arrests while attending court proceedings. (Photo by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)
By Kevin Hardy | Stateline
Democratic lawmakers proposed nearly 250 bills in state capitols this year seeking to limit federal immigration enforcement efforts as they sought to push back against what they view as federal government overreach. About 20% of them introduced across 32 states passed.
An adult male blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis, also known as a deer dick, crawls along the seam of a camouflage garment. (Photo by Lauren Bishop/U.S. CDC)
Second Powassan case of 2026 confirmed; RI health officials urge precautions to reduce tick exposure
By Alexander Castro
Rhode Island health officials on Thursday confirmed the state’s second case of Powassan virus this year. A Newport County man in his 70s tested positive for the virus in late July, the Rhode Island Department of Health confirmed. The rare tickborne illness — symptoms include fever, headache, nausea or vomiting — can spread from tick to person much more quickly than the bacteria that cause Lyme disease. It can cause fatal encephalitis, or inflammation of the brain.
ICYMI
2026 Rhode Island Primary Voter Guide | Rhode Island Current Staff
Four Democratic AG candidates’ records go on trial in first TV debate | Alexander Castro
DOJ targets 3 more states in effort to axe in-state tuition for immigrants | Shauneen Miranda, D.C. Bureau
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