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Rhode Island Republicans on Saturday reelected Joe Powers to a second term as party chairman.
Powers won 111-45 against challenger Jessica Drew-Day, who had questioned his effectiveness in getting Republicans elected during his first term.
Former House Republican leader Patricia Morgan sought to postpone the vote, alleging that Powers had eliminated voters to secure his victory, but she was ruled out of order.
Rhode Island Republicans on Saturday reelected Joe Powers to a second term leading the state party.
Powers defeated Jessica Drew-Day 111-45 in the vote for party chairman at a meeting at the Event Factory in Warwick. Three other members of his slate of party officer candidates also won.
“Now is the time to unite, put differences aside, and get to work implementing our game plan to grow the party, engage voters, and advance conservative solutions that benefit all Rhode Islanders,” Powers said in a news release after the victory.
Niyoka Powell was elected vice chairman over Angelo Kapsimalis, 129-29.
Mary Lou Sanborn was elected party secretary over former House Republican leader and U.S. Senate candidate Patricia Morgan 118-36.
Linda Jamison was elected treasurer. She was unopposed.
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Powers, a 52-year-old Cranston real estate agent, was first elected chairman in 2023. Most of the Rhode Island GOP establishment backed his bid for another term.
Powers’ leadership effectiveness questioned
Drew-Day, of South Kingstown, had been Powers’ vice chair for the last two years but challenged how effective he has been getting Republicans elected, even as Donald Trump was elected president and came closer to winning Rhode Island than any GOP presidential candidate in decades.
Republicans currently hold 14 seats in the 113-seat Rhode Island General Assembly.
Both Powers and Drew-Day have run unsuccessfully for seats in the state House of Representatives in the past.
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Morgan accuses Powers of eliminating voters
Morgan, who had a turbulent relationship with some fellow House Republicans, backed Drew-Day and Kapsimalis as part of an alternative to Powers’ slate of candidates.
The morning of the vote she accused Powers of eliminating “more than a dozen” voters by not recognizing city committees in her hometown of West Warwick as well as Burrillville and Pawtucket. She moved to postpone the election of party officers but was ruled out of order.
“Joe has outdone Xi Jinping,” Morgan wrote to the media before the vote, referring to the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party. “In this case, Joe clearly knows he is losing to Jessica Drew-Day and her slate and must eliminate votes that he knows will go against him.”
Powell called for party unity after the vote.
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“Being the minority party in this state means nothing is handed to you and you have to work twice as hard in a constant uphill battle,” Powell said. “Only together do we rise.”
The Rhode Island Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at June 5, 2025, results for each game:
Winning Lucky For Life numbers from June 5 drawing
01-14-19-28-41, Lucky Ball: 07
Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Numbers numbers from June 5 drawing
Midday: 6-2-7-1
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Evening: 6-5-0-2
Check Numbers payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Wild Money numbers from June 5 drawing
05-10-11-17-37, Extra: 20
Check Wild Money payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
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Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
Prizes less than $600 can be claimed at any Rhode Island Lottery Retailer. Prizes of $600 and above must be claimed at Lottery Headquarters, 1425 Pontiac Ave., Cranston, Rhode Island 02920.
Mega Millions and Powerball jackpot winners can decide on cash or annuity payment within 60 days after becoming entitled to the prize. The annuitized prize shall be paid in 30 graduated annual installments.
Winners of the Lucky for Life top prize of $1,000 a day for life and second prize of $25,000 a year for life can decide to collect the prize for a minimum of 20 years or take a lump sum cash payment.
When are the Rhode Island Lottery drawings held?
Powerball: 10:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 10:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Midday): 1:30 p.m. ET daily.
Numbers (Evening): 7:29 p.m. ET daily.
Wild Money: 7:29 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Rhode Island editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Basking sharks, despite their size, pose no threat to humans. They have tiny teeth, no interest in … More large prey, and spend most of their time following plankton blooms.
HUM Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Just in time for the 50th anniversary of “Jaws,” a real-life shark sighting had New Englanders channeling their best “shahk in the pawnd” impressions this week. The moment unfolded at the end of last month near Block Island, Rhode Island; it was here, in the calm waters of the Great Salt Pond, that diners enjoying a seafood meal at Dead Eye Dick’s spotted something unusual slicing through the surface.
A pair of unmistakable dorsal fins.
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Phones came out, videos were taken, and soon even the NGO Atlantic Shark Institute was sharing the footage of the sizable animal online. The organization, which monitors shark activity throughout the region, joked about the parallel to the infamous movie and invited the public to guess what kind of shark had found its way into the sheltered saltwater lagoon.
Speculation quickly flooded the comments. Guesses ranged from great whites to sand tigers to makos. But the truth was far less dramatic and dangerous. In the video, the silhouette looked imposing, and anyone unfamiliar with shark species could understandably assume it was something dangerous. The shark, as confirmed later by the institute’s executive director Jon Dodd, was a basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus). Enormous, yes, as they are the second largest fish in the ocean after the whale shark. But dangerous? Not quite. They’re filter-feeders, cruising through the ocean with mouths wide open to scoop up plankton, not people.
A 20-foot basking shark made an unexpected appearance in Rhode Island’s Great Salt Pond, stirring … More memories of Jaws but posing no danger.
The Atlantic Shark Institute Facebook Page
The one in the Great Salt Pond was around 20 feet long (just over 6 meters), making it relatively modest for its species, which can grow over 40 feet (12 meters) in length. Still, seeing an animal that size in a place where people typically kayak, swim, and anchor boats is enough to give anyone pause. “The size of these sharks, the height of the dorsal fin, and how they move can be a real attention getter!” said Dodd to a local outlet. “They can look quite a bit like a great white shark at a glance, or from distance, and that can put people into a panic and justifiably so based on where you might be at the time (think in the water!)” Basking sharks, despite their size, pose no threat to humans. They have tiny teeth, no interest in large prey, and spend most of their time following plankton blooms. And yes, they can look eerily similar to great white sharks, especially if your only reference is the iconic 1975 Spielberg film. “The good news? They’ve never been implicated in any bite on a human being, as noted in the International Shark Attack File. They are endangered in some parts of the world and considered “vulnerable” here in the U.S.,” ASI explained.
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While the scene may have triggered some instinctive unease, experts were quick to clarify there was no cause for concern. “Sharks are arriving in Rhode Island daily,” the Atlantic Shark Institute continued in a Facebook post, “as water temperatures continue to rise and more and more species of shark find them suitable to their liking.” This is part of a larger trend tied to climate change and warming ocean temperatures, which are shifting where marine animals spend their time during the summer months. It’s no surprise then that basking sharks, which are normally seen off the coast in deeper waters, are making occasional detours into shallower inlets like Great Salt Pond. Fortunately for any nervous swimmers, the shark didn’t linger. By the next day, it had likely found its way back out to open water, leaving only ripples (and viral footage) in its wake.
As we mark the anniversary of “Jaws,”it’s worth recognizing how far we have come as a society. Fifty years ago, a scene like this might have ended in alarm and calls for the removal of the individual (likely leading to a grim end for the shark in question). Today, it ends with a Facebook post, a science lesson, and a bit of local pride. After all, not every summer hotspot gets a visit from one of the ocean’s true giants.