Buddy Cianci, a former Providence, Rhode Island, mayor and two-time felon, lost consciousness at a portrait unveiling in his honor at Providence City Hall Thursday evening.
Affiliate WJAR-TV reports that Cianci fell to the floor about a half an hour after his portrait was unveiled. Reporters were taken out of the room as medics rushed to his aid.
Cianci later told reporters that he was "fine" despite the medical scare.
"I was a little dehydrated," he said. "The room was hot. I finished my speech and I just sat down."
Before the incident, Cianci told the crowd it wasn't the first time he's "been framed," a line met by applause and cheers.
Cianci was Providence's longest-serving mayor with 21 years in city hall. But he was forced from office twice, first in 1984 with his no contest plea for assaulting a man with a fireplace log, ashtray and lit cigarette.
Cianci's second administration ended in 2002 with a 4 ½-year prison term for racketeering conspiracy.
He ran unsuccessfully for mayor last year.
City reference archivist Britni Gorman says the portrait was privately funded. She said Cianci's criminal history was not a concern, and the portrait is part of carrying on tradition.
