In about two weeks, candidates for local and legislative offices across the state will be filing their declarations of candidacies, the first step in an election process that culminates with the general election in November.
Some candidates have already announced, although nothing becomes official until they actually file the declaration papers and then accumulate the required number of signatures on their nomination papers that will put them on the ballot.
If history portends the present, then at least a third of local and legislative candidates will run unopposed. In Rhode Island, according to Ballotpedia, 35 percent of local and legislative contests were uncontested in 2022. Nationally, 33 percent of legislative positions went unopposed and 69 percent of local elections were uncontested. Those local elections include everything from town clear to town council.
And, we can expect, that voter turnout will not be robust, although in a presidential year, we can expect an uptick in voter turnout from 2022, when 43.87 percent of Rhode Island registered voters turned out, according to Ballotpedia. That’s lower than 46.76 percent of registered voters who went to the polls nationally.
In the 2020 presidential election year, those numbers were 65.34 percent in Rhode Island and 66.7 percent nationally.
The 2020 numbers seem impressive, until you look at the figures compiled by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which has the U.S. voter turnout in 2020, thirty first. Uruguay was number one at 90.1 percent.
Here are important dates for voters:
- August 11 is the deadline to register to vote in the September 10 party primaries.
- August 20 is the deadline to submit mail ballot applications.
- Early voting for the primaries is August 21 – September 9.
- Primaries, September 10.
- October 6 is the deadline to register to vote in the general election,
- October 15 is the deadline to submit mail ballot applications.
- Early voting is October 16 – November 4.
- November 5 is the general election.
Here are important dates for candidates:
- For candidates, May 25, 26, and 27 was the deadline to register to vote to be eligible to file a Declaration of Candidacy.
- Candidates can file a Declaration of Candidacy on June 24, 25, and 26.
- July 2 is the first day for candidates to pick up nomination papers. Candidates for federal office and independent presidential electors (or their designees) obtain nomination papers from the RI Department of State, Elections Division. Candidates (or their designees). General assembly, local office, district committee, and local committee candidates obtain nomination papers from local boards of canvassers where they filed their declaration of candidacy. Candidates in the city of Providence pick up their nomination papers from the State Elections Division.
- July 12 is the deadline to submit nomination papers.
- July 15 is the deadline to file objections to candidates.
- July 15 is the deadline for candidates to withdraw from the race.
- July 18 is the deadline for board of elections to certify nomination papers.
- July 19 is the deadline for withdrawal of candidates.
- August 7 is the deadline for local boards of canvassers to submit local questions to the RI Department of State Elections.
- September 13 at 5 p.m. Ballot placement lottery
- November 5 is the general election.
