The Rhode Island Senate is the upper house of the Rhode Island General Assembly,the state legislature of the U.S. state of Rhode Island,the lower house being the Rhode Island House of Representatives. It is composed of 38 Senators,each of whom is elected to a two-year term. Rhode Island is one of the 14 states where its upper house serves at a two-year cycle,rather than the normal four-year term as in most states. There is no limit to the number of terms that a Senator may serve. The Rhode Island Senate meets at the Rhode Island State Capitol in Providence.
Since the Great Depression,Rhode Island politics have been dominated by the Rhode Island Democratic Party,and the state is considered part of the Democrats' "Blue Wall." Democrats have won all but four presidential elections since 1928,with the exceptions being 1952,1956,1972,and 1984. The Rhode Island Republican Party,although virtually non-existent in the Rhode Island General Assembly,has remained competitive in gubernatorial elections,having won one as recently as 2006. Until 2014,Democrats had not won a gubernatorial election in the state since 1992,and it was not until 2018 that they won one by double digits. The Rhode Island General Assembly has continuously been under Democratic control since 1959.
Robert Emmett Craven,Sr. is an American politician and a Democrat in the Rhode Island House of Representatives representing District 32 since January 1,2013. He serves as Chairman of the House Municipal Government Committee and a member of the House Judiciary Committee. Craven also serves on the R.I. Governor's Justice Reinvestment Working Group.
Leonidas P. “Lou”Raptakis is an American politician and a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 33 since January 2013. Raptakis served non-consecutively from January 1997 until January 2011 in the District 20 and 33 seats,having served consecutively in the Rhode Island General Assembly from January 1993 until January 1997 in the Rhode Island House of Representatives District 31 seat. He was a candidate for Secretary of State of Rhode Island in 2010.
Gayle L. Goldin is an American politician and a former Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 3 from January 2013 to August 2021. She is originally from Montreal,Canada,having immigrated to the United States at a young age.
William J. Conley Jr. is an American politician who was a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 18 from January 2013 to January 2021.
Joshua Miller is an American politician who serves as a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing Cranston District 28 since January 2007.
Harold M. Metts is an American politician and a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 6 since January 2005. After Charles D. Walton,he is the second African American to serve in the Rhode Island Senate. Metts served non-consecutively in the Rhode Island General Assembly from January 1985 until December 31,1998 in the Rhode Island House of Representatives.
James C. Sheehan is an American politician and a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 36 since January 2003. Sheehan served consecutively from January 2001 until January 2003 in the District 23 seat. On November 6,2018,Sheehan won election to a tenth consecutive term in the Rhode Island Senate,defeating Republican challenger John P. Silvaggio by a margin of 66.9 percent to 32.7 percent.
Hanna M. Gallo is an American politician and a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 27 since January 2003. Gallo served consecutively from January 1999 until January 2003 in the District 12 seat.
Paul W. Fogarty is an American politician and a former Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate who represented District 23 from January 2003 to January 1,2019. Fogarty served consecutively from January 1999 until January 2003 in the District 27 seat. He is the son of former Rhode Island state Senator Charles Fogarty,Sr.,the younger brother of Rhode Island Lieutenant governor Charles J. Fogarty,and the nephew of United States Representative John E. Fogarty.
Daniel Da Ponte is an American politician and was a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 14 from January 2003 to January 2019. Da Ponte served consecutively from January 1999 until January 2003 in the District 42 seat,and served as chair of the Senate Finance Committee from 2009 to 2018. Da Ponte left the Rhode Island Senate after choosing not to stand for re-election in the November 2018 general election,he was succeeded by teacher and labor leader Valerie Lawson. Da Ponte is of Azorean heritage.
Michael J. McCaffrey is an American politician and a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 29 since January 2003. He has been the Rhode Island Senate Majority Leader since March 23,2017. McCaffrey served consecutively from January 1995 until January 2003 in the District 16 seat.
Marc A. Côté is an American former politician of French-Canadian descent. A Democrat,Côtérepresented Woonsocket,Rhode Island in the Rhode Island Senate from 1995 until 2019. Côtéwas originally represented to the Senate's 31st district,but was redistricted to the 21st district in 2002,where he served until he was redistricted again in 2006 to the 24th district.
David E. Bates was an American politician and a Republican member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 32 since January 2007. Bates served consecutively from January 1993 until January 2007 in the District 9 and District 44 seats.
Dennis L. Algiere is an American politician and a Republican member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 38 from January 2003 to January 2023. Algiere served consecutively from January 1993 until January 2003 in the District 26 seat.
Maryellen Goodwin was an American politician and a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate representing District 24 since January 2005. Goodwin served consecutively from January 1987 until January 2005 in the District 1 and District 4 seats.
The 2022 Rhode Island gubernatorial election was held on November 8,2022,to elect the governor of Rhode Island. Incumbent Democratic governor Dan McKee became Rhode Island's governor on March 2,2021,when term-limited Gina Raimondo resigned following her confirmation as United States Secretary of Commerce. McKee easily won a full term on election day,defeating Republican Ashley Kalus by more than 19 percentage points.
Albert Joseph Lepore Sr. was an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives from 1969 to 1981,representing North Providence in the 6th district.
Walter J. Gray was an American politician who served as a member of the Rhode Island Senate who represented the 6th Senate district which encompassed South Kingstown and New Shoreham,and briefly encompassing Exeter until it was redistricted to the 41st Senate district in 1992. Gray served from 1991 to 1995.
