It’s been nine days since Rhode Island voters could begin voting ahead of the Sept. 10 primary elections, but few have actually done so.
As of 4:30 p.m. Thursday, the R.I. Secretary of State’s office reported 8,774 ballots cast either by mail or early, in-person. That represents 1.1% of the state’s 720,626 eligible voters.
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The municipality with the highest early vote turnout? Providence — with 1,030 ballots out of 95,684 active registered voters). Roughly 83% of those votes were mailed.
The municipality with the fewest early votes overall is Central Falls, with 32 cast. Rhode Island’s smallest city has 7,636 total registered voters, according to the Rhode Island Department of State’s website.
John Marion, executive director of Common Cause Rhode Island, said he was not surprised by the low turnout, given that nearly half of the 113 General Assembly races — 57 — feature an incumbent running unopposed in both primary and general elections.
“Even though it’s a presidential year, it’s a sleepy primary year in Rhode Island,” he said.
The big races to watch, Marion said, are the Senate and mayoral races in Cranston — which had 752 early ballots cast as of Thursday.
Cranston has 55,577 registered voters.
“In low turnout primaries, it’s a ground game,” Marion said. “If you don’t have a lot of competitive races that are driving voters, then you’re going to have these low numbers.”
In-person early voting continues through 4 p.m. Sept. 9.
Those voting by mail have through 8 p.m. on Sept. 10 to submit their ballots to drop boxes at their local Board of Canvassers or mailed to the state’s Board of Elections at 2000 Plainfield Pike, Suite A Cranston, RI 02921. No postage is necessary.
Christopher Shea is a staff writer for the Rhode Island Current.
