No drama, lots of voters as Election Day kicks off in Rhode Island

A brisk start to Election Day in Rhode Island puts the state on track to top turnout in the 2022 midterms, and potentially, 2018, too, said Miguel Nunez, executive director for the state Board of Elections.

Nunez’ projection came during the elections panel’s mid-morning meeting Tuesday, which was scheduled to address potential Election Day problems. But as of 10 a.m., voting across the 414 statewide polling locations had gone smoothly, Nunez told the elections board.

More than 39,000 voters had cast ballots in the first three hours since polls opened, which, combined with early and mail ballots brought the total to 168,711 — 21% turnout, Nunez said.

Orchard Farms Elementary School in Cranston was the busiest polling place Tuesday morning, while the East Providence Senior Center had the fewest voters: just three people showed up by 10 a.m., Nunez said.

In 2022, voter turnout topped 43%. Four years earlier, in 2018, 48% of registered voters cast ballots.

The state’s Sept. 9 primary also saw record turnout, driven by a surge in younger voters and high-profile races including for Providence mayor and Rhode Island governor. Fewer state and local races are considered competitive in the general election, with many primary victors now running unopposed.

The contest between Democratic Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos and her Republican challenger, John Loughlin, appears the closest based on public polling.

Persephone Allen, an educator, identified David Morales’ campaign for Providence mayor as one factor which drove her — and her child, in a baby carrier — to Parenti Villa in Providence’s Federal Hill neighborhood.

“I think that he’s thinking about the needs of people in Providence,” Allen said, “and I’m excited about how energized and present he is in the city, and also how he’s particularly thinking about the housing crisis.” 

Morales faces Republican challenger Dave Talan.

The titular governor’s race has garnered public attention, fueled in part by attack ads and campaign finance complaints related to the three main candidates. 

Independent gubernatorial candidate Ken Block has filed two complaints against  Democrat Helena Buonanno Foulkes, alleging that state party spending on digital ads and mailers for Foulkes exceeded the cap in state law. Meanwhile, Republican nominee Aaron Guckian faces a complaint from his primary opponent, Elaine Pelino, for failing to document the in-kind contributions from his private plane trip to Florida last month.

Matos has also submitted a complaint against Loughlin, contending that his campaign manager skimmed money off ad payments for his own benefit, a violation of the restrictions around the state matching funds program. Both Matos and Loughlin are participating in the matching funds program, which provides taxpayer-funded money to supplement private donations, as long as candidates agree to contribution and spending limits.

Chris Hunter, a spokesperson for the elections board, declined to comment on any of the campaign finance complaints, which remain private pending a potential investigation and evidence of wrongdoing. The elections panel also did not discuss the complaints during the morning meeting.

Hunter confirmed there were no staffing shortages at the polls Tuesday, a problem which led to seven polling sites in Providence opening late during the primary. Following the mass callouts and no-shows of 100 poll workers on Sept. 9, city and state election administrators put special emphasis on finding enough people to commit to the paid day job for Election Day.

At Parenti Villa, poll workers Fran Paranzino and Karen Hirsch described a robust but smooth start to the day. “Very busy,” Paranzino said of the morning’s turnout at the Tobey Street location. “I think we’ve gotten close to 300 folks already.”

“It’s just really great to see the community come out,” Paranzino added.

Hirsch said that roughly 700 people had voted at Parenti Villa during the primary.

The issues with poll workers calling out on Primary Day hadn’t transpired again, the two poll workers said, with Hirsch calling Tuesday’s operations “much smoother” so far.

“So far, we haven’t had any issues,” Paranzino said. “No one’s been reassigned. When the board of canvassers came around, they said everything looked great.” 

The number of poll workers across the state was not immediately available.

The elections board meets again at 6 p.m. to review Election Day voting, and address any new problems. Polls close at 8 p.m.