Rhode Island is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west;Massachusetts to its north and east;and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Island Sound;and shares a small maritime border with New York,east of Long Island. Rhode Island is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous,with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020;but it has grown at every decennial count since 1790 and is the second-most densely populated state,after New Jersey. The state takes its name from the eponymous island,though nearly all its land area is on the mainland. Providence is its capital and most populous city.
Cranston,formerly known as Pawtuxet,is a city in Providence County,Rhode Island,United States. The official population of the city in the 2020 United States Census was 82,934,making it the second-largest city in the state. The center of population of Rhode Island is located in Cranston. Cranston is a part of the Providence metropolitan area.
The Station nightclub fire occurred on the evening of February 20,2003,at The Station,a nightclub and hard rock music venue in West Warwick,Rhode Island,United States,killing 100 people and injuring 230. During a concert by the rock band Great White,a pyrotechnic display ignited flammable acoustic foam in the walls and ceilings surrounding the stage. Within six minutes,the entire building was engulfed in flames. The fire was the deadliest fireworks accident in U.S. history and the fourth-deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history. It was also the second-deadliest nightclub fire in New England,behind the 1942 Cocoanut Grove fire.
West Warwick is a town in Kent County,Rhode Island,United States. The population was 31,012 at the 2020 census.
Vincent Albert "Buddy" Cianci,Jr. was an American politician,attorney,radio talk show host,political commentator,and convicted felon who served as the mayor of Providence,Rhode Island from 1975 to 1984 and again from 1991 to 2002. Cianci was the longest-serving mayor of Providence,having held office for over 21 years.
David Nicola Cicilline is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Rhode Island's 1st congressional district from 2011 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party,he was the 36th mayor of Providence from 2003 to 2011,the first openly gay mayor of a U.S. state capital.
Edward Daniel DiPrete is an American politician. He served as the 70th Governor of Rhode Island for three two-year terms,serving from 1985 to 1991. Convicted of numerous corruption charges,he is the only Rhode Island governor to have gone to prison.
John Orlando Pastore was an American lawyer and politician. A member of the Democratic Party,he served as a United States Senator from Rhode Island from 1950 to 1976 and as the 61st governor of Rhode Island from 1945 to 1950. He was the first Italian American elected to the Senate.
Stephen Patrick Laffey is an American politician and businessman who served as Mayor of Cranston,Rhode Island from 2003 to 2007. A former member of the Republican Party,Laffey lost primary bids for the United States Senate from Rhode Island in 2006 and the House of Representatives from Colorado's 4th congressional district in 2014.
Gordon Dennis Fox is an American attorney and politician from Providence,Rhode Island. He served formerly as the Speaker of the Rhode Island House of Representatives,before resigning in disgrace. A member of the Democratic Party,he was first elected to the legislature in 1992. On June 11,2015 Fox was sentenced to three years in federal prison after pleading guilty to charges including bribery,fraud,and filing a false tax return.
The Providence metropolitan area is a region extending into eight counties in two states. Its core is in the states of Rhode Island and Massachusetts,and it is the 38th largest metropolitan area in the United States. The largest city in the Providence MSA is Providence,Rhode Island,with an estimated population of 1,622,520,exceeding that of Rhode Island by slightly over 60%. The MSA covers all of Rhode Island and Bristol County,Massachusetts,with an average population density of 2300 per mi2.
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County,it is one of the oldest cities in New England,founded in 1636 by Roger Williams,a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He named the area in honor of "God's merciful Providence" which he believed was responsible for revealing such a haven for him and his followers. The city developed as a busy port,as it is situated at the mouth of the Providence River at the head of Narragansett Bay.
The 2012 United States Senate election in Rhode Island was on November 6,2012,alongside the presidential election,elections to the United States House of Representatives,and various state and local elections.
The 2014 Rhode Island gubernatorial election took place on November 4,2014,to elect the Governor of Rhode Island,concurrently with the election of Rhode Island's Class II U.S. Senate seat,as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
Allan Wai-Ket Fung is an American attorney and politician who served as Mayor of Cranston,Rhode Island from 2009 to 2021. He was the Republican nominee for Governor of Rhode Island in the 2014 and 2018 elections as well as the Republican nominee for U.S. representative for Rhode Island's 2nd congressional district in 2022.
The 2014 United States Senate election in Rhode Island was held on November 4,2014 to elect a member of the United States Senate from the State of Rhode Island,concurrently with the election of the governor of Rhode Island,as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
A general election was held in the U.S. state of Rhode Island on November 4,2014. All of Rhode Island's executive officers went up for election as well as a United States Senate seat and both of Rhode Island's two seats in the United States House of Representatives. Primary elections were held on September 9,2014.
The 2018 Rhode Island gubernatorial election was held on November 6,2018,to elect the Governor of Rhode Island,concurrently with the election of Rhode Island's Class I U.S. Senate seat,as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states,elections to the United States House of Representatives,and various state and local elections.
Herbert "Herb" P. Weiss is an American author and journalist. He is best known for his work as a writer and as an arts and cultural ambassador for the city of Pawtucket.
James A. Diossa is an American politician from Rhode Island. A member of the Democratic Party,he is the Rhode Island General Treasurer. He served as a member of the city council and as mayor of Central Falls,Rhode Island,guiding the city after it declared bankruptcy.
