‘What I believe can happen in the city of Cranston is no different than what I think can happen statewide.’”

Maria Bucci

Could the next lieutenant governor be from Cranston?

On Tuesday, Lt. Gov. Dan McKee’s transition team released an “authenticated list” of roughly 60 applicants for the post, which will become vacant once Gov. Gina Raimondo is confirmed as secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce and McKee assumes the governorship.

One name that appears on the list is familiar to Cranston residents – Maria Bucci, a former Ward 4 City Council member who was the Democratic nominee for mayor last year.

Reached Tuesday afternoon, Bucci, who was recently elected chair of the Cranston Democratic City Committee, confirmed she submitted an application. She said there has been “nothing formal yet” in terms of contact with the transition team, beyond putting in her name and résumé.

Bucci said she and McKee – who she has known “for a long time” – “share a lot of the values when it comes to supporting businesses and the health and safety of our residents.” She said her pitch to McKee, and her approach to the lieutenant governor’s office, would mirror messaging from her campaign for mayor.

“The message is still the same,” she said. “What I believe can happen in the city of Cranston is no different than what I think can happen statewide.”

Another familiar local name was not on the list – City Council Vice President Ed Brady. On Sunday, Brady told the Herald he had applied for the lieutenant governor’s seat, although he declined to comment further.

Brady did not immediately respond to a message from the Herald on Tuesday afternoon, after the list of applicants was released.

Mike Trainor, a spokesman for the McKee transition, on Tuesday confirmed Brady’s name was not on the list of applicants received through the transition’s website. The online application portal closed on Feb. 2, and the transition team had worked to verify the applications in the following days leading up to Tuesday’s release of the full list.

“It’s possible [Brady] put it in after the portal closed down last week … It certainly didn’t make its way to the portal through us,” Trainor said.

On social media over the weekend, Brady used the occasion of Tom Brady’s Super Bowl victory to confirm his interest in serving as McKee’s No. 2.

“Tom Brady left the Patriots last year to pursue ‘great opportunity, a great change and a great challenge.’ Similarly, another Brady has stepped out of his comfort zone for a great challenge and has thrown his hat in the ring to be Rhode Island’s next Lt. Governor,” he wrote, including the hashtag “MckeeBrady.” The post includes a picture of the councilman and the words, “Dream big, work hard, be kind.”

Brady, a restaurateur and part of the group that owns The Thirsty Beaver and other establishments, represents Ward 4 on the council. He was first appointed in 2018 to fill the seat after the resignation of Trent Colford. A Republican, he is serving his second elected term.

Selecting Brady would require McKee, a Democrat who has long been gearing up for a 2022 gubernatorial bid, to cross party lines.

On social media, Citywide Councilwoman Nicole Renzulli, also a Republican, suggested the bipartisan nature of the selection represents a strong point of Brady’s candidacy rather than a liability.

On Twitter, she wrote: “In such a polarized climate, what RI needs most, is for its leaders to put people over politics. It might be the right time for a small business focused Democratic Governor to choose a small business focused moderate Republican for Lt Gov.”

Brady’s interest in serving under McKee comes after the councilman has become an active voice in advocating for the state’s small business community – particularly its restaurants – in the face of the economic challenges posed by the pandemic. McKee has also made business outreach a centerpiece of his messaging, and in recent months he has at times been critical of Raimondo’s approach to providing financial assistance to businesses.

Brady was one of the lead sponsors of a recent council resolution calling on the state to roll back some of its pandemic restrictions on businesses – specifically the curfew for restaurants and some other establishments, which was recently lifted. The resolution passed the council unanimously, and McKee was among those who testified in support of the measure.

In a separate Facebook post, Renzulli expanded on the small business aspect of Brady’s work and candidacy.

“This past week I have visited many local small businesses and it has been inspiring to see the pride in the faces of the business owners, employees, and patrons who all came together to fight back and get the COVID-19 curfew lifted. There is still much work to be done, but small business owners have HOPE, as little by little, the light is making its way through the dark,” she wrote.

She continued: “It has taken the amplified voices of many to navigate small businesses through this pandemic, but the voices of two men, on opposite sides of the aisle, stand out to me as the loudest. Those men are future Governor and current Lt. Governor Dan McKee and restauranteur, City Councilman Edward Brady. Two small business owners at heart, McKee and Brady share the belief that small businesses are the backbone of our economy and the heart of our communities.”

City Council President Chris Paplauskas and Mayor Ken Hopkins were among those who expressed support for Brady’s lieutenant governor bid on Facebook.

It remains unclear precisely when McKee will take the reins as governor. Impeachment proceedings in the U.S. Senate, and a hold placed on Raimondo’s nomination by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, have seemingly delayed the governor’s departure until later this month.

McKee drew criticism last week after his transition team initially said it would not release the names of those who applied for the lieutenant governor’s seat. He had established an online application portal and accepted resumes from prospective appointees, and the window for applications closed on Feb. 2.

McKee’s team subsequently reversed course, saying it would release the names of the applicants following a review to confirm the applications.

Some local voices have called on McKee not to fill the lieutenant governor’s seat. In a joint statement with Rhode GOP Chairwoman Sue Cienki, Steve Frias – a Cranston resident, local historian and the state’s Republican National Committeeman – noted that Democratic state senators in the past supported legislation that would have required the office to remain vacant.

Frias stated: “The last time the office of lieutenant governor became vacant was in 1997. Senate Democrats opposed Governor Lincoln Almond’s plan to fill the vacancy through an appointment. In fact, Senate Democrats passed legislation that would have required the office of lieutenant governor to remain vacant and made any appointment or nomination for lieutenant governor null and void (Senate Bill 97-S0057; Senate Journal 1/21/1997). Senators Maryellen Goodwin and Polisena sponsored the legislation and Senators Dominick Ruggerio and McCaffrey voted for it. Back then, some Democrats like R.I. Democratic Party Treasurer Jack McConnell argued: ‘Rhode Island taxpayers should not have to bear the full burden of funding for an office for an individual they did not elect and for an unknown agenda that they have not approved.’”

In a statement accompanying the list of applicants, McKee said: “I am heartened by the response we received from Rhode Islanders who are interested in getting involved to strengthen our state. I thank them for sharing their unique perspectives on how the Lieutenant Governor position can help move Rhode Island forward as we roll out vaccines and rebuild our economy.”

The statement indicates McKee “will address filling the lieutenant governor’s position after he is sworn in as Governor.”

The full list of applicants for lieutenant governor released by the McKee transition is as follows:

Robert Albanese, Dana Amore, Ray Berberick, Elizabeth Beretta-Perik, James Black, Maria Bucci, John Bushee, John Carlevale Sr., Dylan Conley, Caswell Cooke, Daniel Cooke, Marco Cross, Christopher Curran, Michelle David, T.J. DelSanto, Andrew Demosthenous, Michael DeRobbio, Grace Diaz, James Diossa, Louis DiPalma, Shirley Francis-Fraser, Joanne Giannini, Jared Goodwin, Alan Gustafson, William Guthrie, Jake Hall, Robert Hamel, Jeffery Hutton, David Iwuc, Paul Kluk, Robert Lafleur, Jason Lavimodiere, Ted LeBlond, Tracy Loignon, Michael Mancuso, Mathew Mannix, Ray Mathieu, Sabina Matos, Kyle McCurdy, Rachael McIntosh, Timothy Meyers, Donna Nesselbush, Camille Nixon, Keith Oliveira, Michael Payette, Lisa Pelosi, Michael Pisaturo, Riley Rancourt, Lisa Ranglin, Aaron Regunberg, Jonathan Riccitelli, Spencer Rickert, Michael Riley, Christopher Rock, Peter Russo, Matthew Santos, Donald Sherman, Stuart Spitalnic, Christopher Stanley, Anastasia Williams.

McKee recently announced the makeup of his transition team, which will be co-chaired by Johnston Mayor Joe Polisena and Dr. John Stoukides. Warwick Mayor Frank Picozzi has been selected as one of the members of the team.