Rhode Island House of Representatives elections, 2016
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| 2016 Rhode Island House Elections | |
|---|---|
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| Primary | September 13, 2016 |
| General | November 8, 2016 |
| 2016 Election Results | |
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All 75 seats in the Rhode Island House of Representatives were up for election in 2016. Democrats gained two seats in the November 2016 election.
Introduction
Elections for the Rhode Island House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on September 13, 2016, and a general election would have taken place on November 8, 2016, if no candidate had won a majority of votes in the primary. The candidate filing deadline was June 29, 2016.
Majority control
- See also: Partisan composition of state houses
Heading into the election, the Democratic Party held the majority in the Rhode Island House of Representatives:
| Rhode Island House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 7, 2016 | After November 8, 2016 | |
| Democratic Party | 61 | 64 | |
| Republican Party | 12 | 10 | |
| Independent | 1 | 1 | |
| Vacancy | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 75 | 75 | |
Incumbents retiring
Six incumbents did not run for re-election in 2016. Those incumbents were:
| Name | Party | Current Office |
|---|---|---|
| John Carnevale | District 13 | |
| Joseph Trillo | District 24 | |
| Doreen Costa | District 31 | |
| Karen Macbeth | District 52 | |
| Helio Melo | District 64 | |
| Daniel Reilly | District 72 |
Note: In addition, District 69 was left vacant by Raymond Gallison, Jr. (D).
Note: Incumbent John Carnevale (D) filed for re-election, but was kicked off the ballot after it was found that he did not live in District 13.
Primary election results
Six incumbents—two senators and four representatives—out of the 18 incumbents with primary challengers were defeated in the primary election on September 13, 2016. In a voice of anti-incumbent sentiment, House Majority leader John DeSimone (D) was defeated by political newcomer Marcia Ranglin-Vassell in the Democratic primary. DeSimone, who first one election in 1992, was the target of mailers by an anti-gun violence group. Former Hasbro Chairman and CEO Alan Hassenfel contributed $87,500 to the group.[2] Out of the four candidates targeted by the mailer, DeSimone and incumbent Jan Malik (D) were defeated. DeSimone's challenger Ranglin-Vassell focused her campaign on DeSimone's past 24 years in office and "issues like gun violence, underperforming schools, and a lack of jobs for young people."[3] Ranglin-Vassell said that she was not surprised by her win. She said, "The people sided with me. This election was about a choice: do you want to stay in the past 24 years, or do you want to move to the future, and they sided with me."[3]
Races we watched
Ballotpedia identified three notable Rhode Island state legislative races in 2016, two of which were state House contests. One of these was a primary contest, and can be viewed by clicking on the "Primary election" tab below.
Click here to read more about Ballotpedia's coverage of notable Rhode Island races »
General election contests
- Two Republican candidates competed to challenge the Democratic Speaker of the House.
- ☑ Nicholas Mattiello (Inc.) ☐ Steven Frias ☐ Shawna Lawton
List of candidates
General election
| 2016 Rhode Island House primary election candidates | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| District | Other | ||
| 1 | Edith Ajello: 2,963 (I) |
No candidate | Raymond Mathieu: 1,398 (Ind.) |
| 2 | Christopher Blazejewski: 3,476 (I) |
Mark Teoli: 636 | |
| 3 | Moira Walsh |
No candidate | |
| 4 | J. Aaron Regunberg (I) |
No candidate | |
| 5 | Marcia Ranglin-Vassell: 2,460 |
Roland Lavallee: 610 | |
| 6 | Raymond Hull (I) |
No candidate | |
| 7 | Daniel McKiernan: 3,496 (I) |
No candidate | Grant Vaneck: 623 (Ind.) |
| 8 | John Lombardi (I) |
No candidate | |
| 9 | Anastasia Williams (I) |
No candidate | |
| 10 | Scott Slater (I) |
No candidate | |
| 11 | Grace Diaz (I) |
No candidate | |
| 12 | Joseph Almeida: 1,815 (I) |
No candidate | Luis Vargas: 1,591 (Ind.) |
| 13 | Ramon Perez |
No candidate | |
| 14 | Charlene Lima (I) |
No candidate | |
| 15 | Nicholas Mattiello: 3,611 (I) |
Steven Frias: 3,526 | Patrick Vallier: 202 (Ind.) |
| 16 | Christopher Millea: 3,355 | Robert B. Lancia: 3,425 (I) |
|
| 17 | Robert Jacquard (I) |
No candidate | |
| 18 | Arthur Handy (I) |
No candidate | |
| 19 | Joseph McNamara: 4,352 (I) |
No candidate | David Mastriano: 2,793 (Ind.) |
| 20 | David Bennett: 2,926 (I) |
No candidate | Daniel Elliott: 2,129 (Ind.) |
| 21 | Camille Vella-Wilkinson: 2,758 |
Michael Penta: 2,179 | Andrew Knutton: 171 (Ind.) Michael Underwood: 1,064 (Ind.) |
| 22 | Joseph J. Solomon, Jr.: 3,847 (I) |
No candidate | Elizabeth Smith: 2,130 (Ind.) |
| 23 | K. Joseph Shekarchi (I) |
No candidate | |
| 24 | Evan Shanley: 3,910 |
Stacia Huyler: 3,309 | |
| 25 | Jared Nunes (I) |
No candidate | |
| 26 | Anthony Paolino: 2,079 | Patricia Morgan: 3,192 (I) |
Vincent Marzullo: 504 (Ind.) |
| 27 | Patricia Serpa: 3,543 (I) |
No candidate | Mark Bourget: 2,735 (Ind.) |
| 28 | Ryan Hall: 2,463 | Robert Nardolillo: 4,288 (I) |
|
| 29 | Lisa Tomasso: 3,269 | Sherry Roberts: 3,950 (I) |
|
| 30 | No candidate | Antonio Giarrusso (I) |
|
| 31 | Julie Casimiro: 4,293 |
Michael Marfeo: 3,165 | |
| 32 | Robert Craven: 4,337 (I) |
Mark Zaccaria: 3,458 | |
| 33 | Carol Hagan McEntee: 4,466 (I) |
No candidate | Douglas Buonanno: 2,874 (Ind.) |
| 34 | Teresa Tanzi (I) |
No candidate | |
| 35 | Kathleen Fogarty: 2,825 (I) |
No candidate | Bruce Waidler: 2,054 (Ind.) |
| 36 | No candidate | No candidate | Blake Filippi (I) |
| 37 | Samuel Azzinaro (I) |
No candidate | |
| 38 | Brian Kennedy: 3,173 (I) |
No candidate | Michael Geary: 2,726 (Ind.) |
| 39 | Larry Valencia: 2,737 | Justin Price: 4,122 (I) |
|
| 40 | Joseph Cardillo: 2,185 | Michael Chippendale: 5,002 (I) |
|
| 41 | Michael Marcello: 3,871 (I) | Robert Quattrocchi: 4,058 |
|
| 42 | Stephen Ucci (I) |
No candidate | |
| 43 | Deborah Fellela: 3,585 (I) |
No candidate | Karin Gorman: 2,581 (Ind.) |
| 44 | Gregory Costantino (I) |
No candidate | |
| 45 | Mia Ackerman: 3,129 (I) |
Ronald Rossi: 1,178 | Paul Santoro: 2,230 (Ind.) |
| 46 | Jeremiah O'Grady: 3,219 (I) |
No candidate | Bradley Collins: 1,733 (Ind.) John Cullen: 1,343 (Ind.) Paul DiDomenico: 702 (Ind.) |
| 47 | Cale Keable: 3,122 (I) |
David Place: 2,988 | |
| 48 | No candidate | Brian Newberry (I) |
|
| 49 | Michael Morin (I) |
No candidate | |
| 50 | Stephen Casey (I) |
No candidate | |
| 51 | Robert Phillips (I) |
No candidate | |
| 52 | Alex Marszalkowski: 4,018 |
Lisa Cannon: 3,627 | |
| 53 | Thomas Winfield: 3,540 (I) |
Stephanie Westgate: 2,648 | |
| 54 | William O'Brien (I) |
No candidate | |
| 55 | Arthur Corvese (I) |
No candidate | |
| 56 | Shelby Maldonado (I) |
No candidate | |
| 57 | James McLaughlin (I) |
No candidate | |
| 58 | Carlos Tobon: 2,554 (I) |
No candidate | Jonathan Vallecilla: 857 (Ind.) |
| 59 | Jean P. Barros: 3,044 (I) |
No candidate | Lori Barden: 834 (Ind.) Andrew Maguire: 258 (Ind.) |
| 60 | David Coughlin, Jr. (I) |
No candidate | |
| 61 | Raymond Johnston, Jr.: 2,886 (I) |
No candidate | James Obenchain: 1,539 (Ind.) |
| 62 | Mary Messier (I) |
No candidate | |
| 63 | Katherine Kazarian: 4,155 (I) |
Christopher Holland: 2,191 | |
| 64 | Helder Cunha |
No candidate | |
| 65 | Gregg Amore (I) |
No candidate | |
| 66 | Joy Hearn (I) |
No candidate | |
| 67 | Jason Knight: 3,736 |
No candidate | Daryl Gould: 1,715 (L) |
| 68 | Kenneth Marshall: 4,078 (I) |
No candidate | William Hunt, Jr.: 2,529 (L) |
| 69 | Susan Donovan: 2,607 |
Antonio Avila: 1,917 | Analee Berretto: 809 (L) |
| 70 | John Edwards (I) |
No candidate | |
| 71 | Dennis Canario: 3,973 (I) |
Justin LaCroix: 3,249 | |
| 72 | Linda Dill Finn: 3,625 | Kenneth Mendonca: 3,791 |
|
| 73 | Marvin Abney (I) |
No candidate | |
| 74 | Deborah Ruggiero: 3,389 (I) |
Rebecca Schiff: 3,162 | |
| 75 | Lauren Carson: 2,909 (I) |
No candidate | Michael W. Smith: 2,265 (Ind.) |
Notes:
| |||
Primary election
Primary contests
- Three Democratic candidates competed for the open seat vacated by the Democratic incumbent.
- ☐ Anthony DeFilippo ☑ Ramon Perez ☐ Lisa Scorpio
Margins of victory
The average margin of victory for contested races in the Rhode Island House of Representatives in 2016 was lower than the national average. Out of 75 races in the Rhode Island House of Representatives in 2016, 41 were contested, meaning at least two candidates competed for that seat in the general election. The average margin of victory across these races was 21.2 percent. Across contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016, the average margin of victory was 29.01 percent.[4]
| Democratic candidates in the Rhode Island House of Representatives saw larger margins of victory than Republican candidates in 2016. Democrats won 64 races. In the 33 races where a winning Democrat faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 22.7 percent. Republicans won 10 races in 2016. In the eight races where a winning Republican faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 15.1 percent. There was one independent candidate who won a race without opposition. |
| More Democratic candidates than Republican candidates saw margins of victory that were less than 10 percentage points. 12 of the 41 contested races in 2016—29.3 percent—saw margins of victory that were 10 percent or less. Six races saw margins of victory that were 5 percent or less. Democrats won eight races with margins of victory of 10 percent or less. |
Rhode Island House of Representatives: 2016 Margins of Victory Less than 10 Percent District Winning Party Margin of Victory District 12 D 6.6 percent District 15 D 1.2 percent District 16 R 1.0 percent District 21 D 9.4 percent District 24 D 8.3 percent District 29 R 9.4 percent District 38 D 7.6 percent District 41 R 2.4 percent District 47 D 2.2 percent District 52 D 5.1 percent District 72 R 2.2 percent District 74 D 3.5 percent
| The average margin of victory for incumbents in the Rhode Island House of Representatives who ran for re-election and won in 2016 was lower than the national average. Sixty-three incumbents who ran for re-election in 2016 won. The average margin of victory for the 32 winning Rhode Island House of Representatives incumbents who faced a challenger in 2016 was 22.4 percent. The average margin of victory for all winning incumbents in contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016 was 31.8 percent. |
| Democratic incumbents in the Rhode Island House of Representatives saw larger margins of victory than Republican incumbents. 54 Democratic incumbents won re-election. In the 26 races where a winning Democratic incumbent faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 23.1 percent. Eight Republican incumbents won re-election. In the six races where a winning Republican incumbent faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 19.4 percent. There was one independent incumbent who won a race without opposition. |
Rhode Island House of Representatives: 2016 Margin of Victory Analysis Party Elections won Average margin of victory[5] Races with incumbent victories Average margin of victory for incumbents[5] Unopposed incumbents Unopposed races Percent unopposed Democratic 64 22.7 percent 54 23.1 percent 28 31 48.4 percent Republican 10 15.1 percent 8 19.4 percent 2 2 20.0 percent Independent 1 Unopposed 1 Unopposed 1 1 100.0 percent Total 75 21.2 percent 63 22.4 percent 31 34 45.3 percent
Click [show] on the tables below to see the margin of victory in Rhode Island House of Representatives districts in 2016.
| Rhode Island House of Representatives: 2016 Margin of Victory by District | ||
|---|---|---|
| District | Winning Party | Margin of Victory |
| District 1 | D | 35.9 percent |
| District 2 | D | 69.1 percent |
| District 3 | D | Unopposed |
| District 4 | D | Unopposed |
| District 5 | D | 60.3 percent |
| District 6 | D | Unopposed |
| District 7 | D | 69.8 percent |
| District 8 | D | Unopposed |
| District 9 | D | Unopposed |
| District 10 | D | Unopposed |
| District 11 | D | Unopposed |
| District 12 | D | 6.6 percent |
| District 13 | D | Unopposed |
| District 14 | D | Unopposed |
| District 15 | D | 1.2 percent |
| District 16 | R | 1.0 percent |
| District 17 | D | Unopposed |
| District 18 | D | Unopposed |
| District 19 | D | 21.8 percent |
| District 20 | D | 15.8 percent |
| District 21 | D | 9.4 percent |
| District 22 | D | 28.7 percent |
| District 23 | D | Unopposed |
| District 24 | D | 8.3 percent |
| District 25 | D | Unopposed |
| District 26 | R | 19.3 percent |
| District 27 | D | 12.9 percent |
| District 28 | R | 27.0 percent |
| District 29 | R | 9.4 percent |
| District 30 | R | Unopposed |
| District 31 | D | 15.1 percent |
| District 32 | D | 11.3 percent |
| District 33 | D | 21.7 percent |
| District 34 | D | Unopposed |
| District 35 | D | 15.8 percent |
| District 36 | I | Unopposed |
| District 37 | D | Unopposed |
| District 38 | D | 7.6 percent |
| District 39 | R | 20.2 percent |
| District 40 | R | 39.2 percent |
| District 41 | R | 2.4 percent |
| District 42 | D | Unopposed |
| District 43 | D | 16.3 percent |
| District 44 | D | Unopposed |
| District 45 | D | 13.8 percent |
| District 46 | D | 21.2 percent |
| District 47 | D | 2.2 percent |
| District 48 | R | Unopposed |
| District 49 | D | Unopposed |
| District 50 | D | Unopposed |
| District 51 | D | Unopposed |
| District 52 | D | 5.1 percent |
| District 53 | D | 14.4 percent |
| District 54 | D | Unopposed |
| District 55 | D | Unopposed |
| District 56 | D | Unopposed |
| District 57 | D | Unopposed |
| District 58 | D | 49.8 percent |
| District 59 | D | 53.4 percent |
| District 60 | D | Unopposed |
| District 61 | D | 30.4 percent |
| District 62 | D | Unopposed |
| District 63 | D | 31.0 percent |
| District 64 | D | Unopposed |
| District 65 | D | Unopposed |
| District 66 | D | Unopposed |
| District 67 | D | 37.1 percent |
| District 68 | D | 23.4 percent |
| District 69 | D | 12.9 percent |
| District 70 | D | Unopposed |
| District 71 | D | 10.0 percent |
| District 72 | R | 2.2 percent |
| District 73 | D | Unopposed |
| District 74 | D | 3.5 percent |
| District 75 | D | 12.5 percent |
Important dates and deadlines
- See also: Rhode Island elections, 2016
The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Rhode Island in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description | |
| June 29, 2016 | Ballot access | Deadline for candidates to file declarations of candidacy | |
| July 15, 2016 | Ballot access | Deadline for filing nomination papers | |
| September 13, 2016 | Election date | Primary election | |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | General election | |
| Source: Rhode Island Secretary of State, "How to Run for Office Guide," accessed April 15, 2016 | |||
Competitiveness
Candidates unopposed by a major party
In 51 (68.0%) of the 75 seats up for election in 2016, there was only one major party candidate running for election. A total of 48 Democrats and two Republicans were guaranteed election barring unforeseen circumstances.
Two major party candidates faced off in the general election in 24 (32%) of the 75 seats up for election.
Primary challenges
Twelve incumbents faced primary competition on September 13. Seven seats were open, leaving 56 incumbents who advanced past the primary without opposition.
Retired incumbents
Six incumbent representatives did not run for re-election, while 68 sought re-election. A list of those incumbents, two Democrats and four Republicans, can be found above. In addition, District 69 was left vacant by Raymond Gallison, Jr. (D).
Results from 2014
There were 6,057 seats in 87 chambers with elections in 2014. All three aspects of Ballotpedia's Competitiveness Index—the number of open seats, incumbents facing primary opposition, and general elections between partisan candidates—showed poor results compared to the prior election cycle. States with elections in 2014 held fewer general elections between partisan candidates. Additionally, fewer incumbents faced primary opposition and more incumbents ran for re-election than in recent years.
Since 2010, when the Competitiveness Index was established, there had not been an even-year election cycle to do statistically worse in any of the three categories. See the following chart for a breakdown of those scores between each year.
| Overall Competitiveness | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 2012 | 2014 | |
| Competitiveness Index | 36.2 | 35.8 | 31.4 |
| % Open Seats | 18.6% | 21.2% | 17.0% |
| % Incumbent with primary challenge | 22.7% | 24.6% | 20.1% |
| % Candidates with major party opposition | 67.3% | 61.7% | 57.0% |
The following table details Rhode Island's rates for open seats, incumbents that faced primary challenges, and major party competition in the 2014 general election.
| Rhode Island General Assembly 2014 Competitiveness | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % Open Seats | % Incumbent with primary challenge | % Candidates with major party opposition | Competitiveness Index | Overall rank |
| 6.2% | 22.6% | 26.6% | 18.5 | 43 |
Historical context
Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.
Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.
Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.
Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.
Campaign contributions
The following chart shows how many candidates ran for State House in Rhode Island in past years and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in State House races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests.[6]
| Rhode Island House of Representatives Donations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Candidates | Amount |
| 2014 | 138 | $2,743,999 |
| 2012 | 159 | $2,749,757 |
| 2010 | 186 | $2,433,622 |
| 2008 | 155 | $2,494,379 |
| 2006 | 130 | $2,537,403 |
State comparison
The map below shows the average contributions to 2014 candidates for state houses. The average contributions raised by state house candidates in 2014 was $59,983. Rhode Island, at $19,884 per candidate, is ranked 36 of 45 for state house chambers with the highest average contributions. Hover your mouse over a state to see the average campaign contributions for that state’s house candidates in 2014.[6][7]
Qualifications
Article III of the Rhode Island Constitution describes the requirements to hold office in Rhode Island's state government.
See also
- Rhode Island House of Representatives
- Rhode Island State Legislature
- State legislative elections, 2016
Footnotes
- ↑ Under Ballotpedia's competitiveness criteria, districts that have a margin of victory of less than 5 percent are considered highly competitive. Districts that have a margin of victory from 5 to 10 percent are considered mildly competitive.
- ↑ Rhode Island Public Radio, "Hassenfeld-Backed Group Trying To Counter Gun Groups' Influence In Four Legislative Races," accessed September 14, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Rhode Island Public Radio, "In Upset, Ranglin-Vassell Defeats DeSimone; Frias Wins In Cranston," accessed September 14, 2016
- ↑ This calculation excludes chambers that had elections where two or more members were elected in a race. These chambers are the Arizona House, the New Hampshire House, the North Dakota House, the South Dakota House, the Vermont House, the Vermont Senate, and the West Virginia House.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Excludes unopposed elections
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 followthemoney.org, "Contributions to candidates and committees in elections in Rhode Island," accessed July 28, 2015
- ↑ This map relies on data collected in July 2015.
