PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Rhode Island House Speaker Gordon Fox is facing his toughest election challenge in years — from an independent political newcomer — as the fallout from Rhode Island’s failed investment in former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling’s defunct video game company continues to roil state politics.

Mark Binder said he once supported Fox but decided to challenge the veteran Democrat because of the role he played in the state’s loan guarantee to Schilling’s 38 Studios. The company filed for bankruptcy in June and the state is likely to be on the hook for some $100 million related to the deal.