Are you concerned that about 3 in 5 General Assembly races will have only one candidate on the ballot this year?

PBN Staff

07/17/2026

THE CHAMBERS MAY be full, but challengers for the House and Senate seats at the R.I. Statehouse are few and far between in 2026. / PBN FILE PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

This year, about three in five General Assembly races will have only one candidate on the ballot.

That’s up from 50% in 2024 and about 30% in 2022.

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In the 38-member Senate, there are only seven primaries this year.

Rhode Island is not alone in seeing growing disinterest in running for political office at the state level. But in a state where one party, Democrats, has long controlled the part-time legislature, growing lack of choice in elected officials weakens the democratic process.

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“A democracy requires choice,” John Marion, executive director for Common Cause Rhode Island, told PBN. “If there is no choice, we don’t have a well-functioning democracy.”