Chris Barnett
Report Looks at Open Meetings Compliance
The General Assembly complied with the state Open Meetings law 96 percent of the time last year, according to our latest review. The state’s Open Meetings law requires most governmental bodies to post meeting notices and agendas at least 48 hours in advance. While the General Assembly is exempt from the law, the House and the [...]
Rhode Island’s Electoral College Votes on Monday
The state’s remarkable year in presidential politics will come to an end this Monday at noon and you’re invited. Rhode Island’s Electoral College will convene at the State House to cast ballots for president and vice president . The historic ceremony will begin precisely at noon when the Kentish Guards in colonial military garb escort the state’s [...]
Check Ahead to Avoid Problems at Polls Tuesday
We have some advice to make your trip to the polls on Tuesday go smoothly. Because many cities and towns had to move polling places due to redistricting, Mollis urges voters to confirm where they will vote ahead of time. For hundreds of thousands of RI voters, Election Day will be their first encounter with [...]
Sunday Is Deadline to Register, Update Voter Registration
Planning on voting on Election Day? Rhode Islanders have until this Sunday to register to vote. Sunday’s deadline applies voters who have moved or changed their name since the last time they voted as well as to new voters. State law requires current voters to re-register under their new name or from their new address in [...]
Join NAACP for Voter Registration, Voter IDs Saturday
This Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Prince Hall Grand Masonic Lodge in Providence, we will register voters and provide free Voter IDs at a voter engagement rally sponsored by the NAACP. “We urge everyone in Rhode Island who is not registered to please register to vote. This upcoming election is very important,” [...]
Check Out the Voter Handbook in Your Mailbox
Be on the look-out for the election guides that will hit your mailbox this week. The 32-page Voter Information Handbook includes descriptions of every statewide ballot question and bond issue as well as information about the state’s new Voter ID law, special accommodations for voters who are elderly, disabled or visually impaired and polling place [...]
Sunday Is Crucial Deadline for September Primary
This Sunday is the deadline to register to vote in the September primary. It is also the last day for voters who have moved or changed their names since the last time they voted to re-register in order to cast a ballot on Sept. 11. Why a Sunday? State law requires Rhode Islanders to be [...]
Your Autograph Will Be Popular
Rhode Islanders should not be surprised to find politicians asking for their autograph for the next week or so. The nearly 2,400 people who filed Declarations of Candidacy last week have until July 13 to collect the signatures of enough eligible voters to officially put them on the ballot. The thresholds range from 50 for [...]
Go Online to See Who Is Officially Running
Rhode Islanders can use our website to see who filed to run for local, state and federal office on the first day candidates could make it official. The on-line Candidates Database includes the name and office of everyone who filed a formal Declaration of Candidacy on Monday. Rhode Islanders who are thinking about running for [...]
Candidates Must Make It Official By Wednesday
The campaign season may have begun months ago, but Rhode Islanders who are thinking about running for office must make it official by this Wednesday at 4 p.m. in order to be eligible to appear on this year’s ballot. Candidates have the next three days to file official Declarations of Candidacy. That deadline is just [...]
Put Rhody’s Independent History at Your Fingertips
On May 4, 1776, Rhode Island became the first American colony to pass a law renouncing its allegiance to King George III of England, and Rhode Islanders can mark Friday’s 236th anniversary of the occasion by reading the historic document for themselves. In the handwritten manuscript, colonial lawmakers accused the King of breaking “the compact” [...]
Lottery Decides Top Spots on Presidential Primary Ballot
Using equipment borrowed from the state lottery, Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis today set the order in which the candidates for the Democrat and Republican presidential nomination will appear on the state’s April 24 primary ballot. Barack Obama will appear first on the Democratic ballot, followed “Uncommitted.” Mitt Romney was selected first in the [...]
You’re Invited to See How Ballots Are Made
In preparation for Rhode Island’s own version of Super Tuesday, Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis is inviting the public to a lottery Wed., March 7, at 5 p.m. in the State Room of the State House. We will use equipment borrowed from the R.I. Lottery to determine the order in which the candidates for [...]
18,000 signatures later there are 119 candidates
One-hundred-and-nineteen Rhode Islanders qualified to run for presidential delegate in the state’s April 24 presidential primary. In order to qualify to appear on the ballot, the candidates had to collect the signatures of at least 150 eligible voters. More than 18,000 signatures were validated by last Friday’s deadline, according to Secretary of State A. Ralph [...]
‘Access 2011′ Looks at General Assembly
The General Assembly complied with the state Open Meetings law nearly 100 percent of the time last year, according to our new “Access 2011″ report. House compliance rose from 94 percent in 2010 to a record 97 percent last year. Senate compliance increased from 90 percent to 99 percent over the same time period. The [...]
135 Want to Go to Presidential Convention
More than 130 Rhode Islanders filed with Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis to run for delegate in the state’s April 24 presidential primary. Among the prominent names are Joe Paolino, Myrth York and Ray Rickman as Barack Obama delegates and Don Carcieri, Scott Avedisian and Alan Fung as Mitt Romney delegates. All 135 candidates [...]
See Garrahy Legacy in Photos & Letters
Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis is honoring Joe Garrahy with an on-line tribute that includes photos of the late Governor with celebrities such as Jesse Jackson, Pope John Paul II and President Reagan as well as everyday Rhode Islanders like Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops. “We could think of no better way to honor [...]
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