Matt Brown Running for Governor Again: Former RI Secretary of State Announces Mendes as Running Mate
Wednesday, September 22, 2021
Former Rhode Island Secretary of State -- and 2018 Democratic gubernatorial candidate -- Matt Brown is running again.
On Wednesday, Brown and State Senator Cynthia Mendes announced their candidacies for Governor and Lieutenant Governor in the 2022 race --- and that they will run on a shared platform alongside a team of 50 progressive candidates for state and local offices as part of the Rhode Island Political Cooperative.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTIn the 2018 Democratic gubernatorial primary, former Governor Gina Raimondo received 57.2% of the vote; Brown received 33.5%, and Spencer Dickinson, 9.3%.
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“Rhode Island has been run by the same corrupt political machine for decades, but it doesn’t have to be,” said Brown. “We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to replace our entire state government in a single day and usher in an era of transparent, progressive, effective government that works for all Rhode Islanders. That’s why I’m running for Governor—and not alone, but alongside Cynthia Mendes and an incredible team of progressive candidates all across the state. Together, and only together, we can make our state work for all Rhode Islanders, the way it always should have.”
“Last year, I was one of ten candidates representing the Rhode Island Political Cooperative who won their election and proved there’s a resounding mandate for progressive, people-centered politics in this state,” said Mendes. “Now, I’m thrilled to be running for Lieutenant Governor alongside Matt and the rest of our slate to finish the job and win a true governing majority. As the pandemic rages through Rhode Island and the climate crisis accelerates, corrupt incumbents in our State House are sitting on their hands, hiding from their voters, and refusing to lift a finger to help us. Our movement is about everyday people across this state taking back our government from the super-rich and their corporate lobbyists.”
About Brown, Mendes -- and Platform
Brown served as Rhode Island’s Secretary of State from 2003 to 2007. He was also the executive director of City Year Rhode Island and the co-founder of Global Zero, an international nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing and eliminating nuclear weapons. Mendes first ran for office last year, defeating Senate Finance Chair Bill Conley.
RI Political Cooperative Policy Platform:
Affordable Housing for All
Ensure that all working families in Rhode Island can afford housing
Extend the eviction moratorium throughout the pandemic
Implement a utility shutoff moratorium throughout the pandemic
Build 10,000 green affordable homes for working families
Implement statewide rent control to ensure that rent increases do not exceed 4% annually
Healthcare for All
Enact Medicare-for-All style universal healthcare
Ensure every RI resident has mental, dental, hearing, and vision care
Take on big pharma to make prescription drugs affordable
Protect reproductive freedom
Quality Education for All
Tax the rich to fund our schools, create smaller class sizes, and improve our school buildings
Ensure that all public school teachers earn at least $60,000 each year
Green New Deal for All
Take on the fossil fuel industry to ensure clean air, clean water, and clean energy for all
Achieve 100% clean electricity by 2028 and net zero emissions by 2040 (first in the country)
Shut down corporate polluters in frontline communities with a just transition for workers
Preserve our natural resources, eliminate clearcutting, expand regenerative agriculture, and guarantee public access to our shoreline
Create thousands of good union jobs
Expand public transportation, electrify all buses, and make the bus free
Build 10,000 green, affordable homes for working families
Fair Economy for All
Help small businesses recover from the pandemic
Pass a $19 per hour minimum wage ($39,520 annually)
Equal Justice for All
Legalize cannabis
End mass incarceration
End cash bail
Ban for-profit prisons
Ensure police accountability
Invest funding in mental health services and drug overdose prevention
End family separations and provide drivers’ licenses to undocumented Rhode Islanders
Pandemic Protection for All
Vaccine requirement to enter public spaces including restaurants, bars, and stadiums (except for people with valid medical or religious reasons not to get vaccinated)
Implement a statewide mask mandate in public spaces
Expand paid sick leave
Democracy for All
End the influence of corporate lobbyist money
Enact public campaign financing
Make election day a statewide holiday
Repeal the voter ID law
Cooperative Pledge:
No Corporate PAC Donations
No Corporate Lobbyist Donations
No Fossil Fuel Donations
