Patrick Kennedy endorses Ray Rickman – “best candidate…to fix schools, fight for progressive causes”

Former US Congressman Patrick Kennedy announced his endorsement of Ray Rickman for the State Senate seat in District 3, the East Side of Providence.

In making the endorsement, Kennedy said, “I know that Ray is the best candidate to fix our public schools, and mental health services,” Kennedy continued. “These aren’t new issues for him — they are causes he’s been championing his entire life.”

“These aren’t new issues for him — they are causes he’s been championing his entire life.”

Rickman, a candidate for State Senate in the District 3 special election, was endorsed today by former Congressman Patrick Kennedy, the nephew of President John F. Kennedy and son of United States Senator Edward Kennedy. Rickman and Kennedy served together in the Rhode Island General Assembly during the 1980s and 1990s. They have continued to work together on issues ranging from mental health advocacy to anti-poverty campaigns.

“Ray Rickman is a proven progressive leader who fights for equality and opportunity for all, even when it’s unpopular,” said Kennedy. “In the Rhode Island legislature, we worked together to fight for progressive causes such as environmental justice, a woman’s right to choose, and LGBTQ+ equality at a time when the state Democratic Party was just as conservative as The Republicans Party. Ray always voted his conscience, even when people told him he’d never win another election.”

In responding to the endorsement, Rickman’s campaign said, “Patrick J. Kennedy’s endorsement is yet another confirmation of Ray’s substantial and decades-long record of getting things done in Rhode Island. Remember to vote on October 5th and consider donating to our important campaign. Rickman is running in the Democratic primary to fill the vacated seat of Sen. Gayle Goldin.

From 1995 to 2011, Patrick Kennedy served as a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives, from Rhode Island’s 1st Congressional District. He is a former member of the President’s Commission on Combatting Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis, and co-founder of One Mind.

More information on Ray Rickman’s campaign and platform, here: https://www.electrayrickman.com.