There are 157 candidates running for the Rhode Island General Assembly in the primaries on Sept. 9. This is the fewest candidates since Ballotpedia began tracking this data in 2010. All 113 seats across both state legislative chambers are up for election this year.

Both major parties have the fewest candidates running since 2010. There are 129 Democrats running and 28 Republicans.

There are 104 incumbents running for re-election and nine open seats. Fourteen incumbents are contested, the second fewest since 2010. The year with the fewest contested incumbents was 2024, when there were 12. An average of about 11 seats were open in the years between 2010 and 2024.

There are 21 Democratic primaries and no Republican primaries. This is the second fewest Democratic primaries, after 2024 when there were 18. This year ties with 2024 for the fewest Republican primaries since 2010.

In a commentary piece that he wrote for the Rhode Island Current, Community College of Rhode Island professor Matt Ulricksen wrote, “Rhode Island isn’t experiencing a temporary lull in competition; it has among the least competitive state legislative elections in the country, year after year.”

Ulricksen cites several studies in his article and offers three possible reasons for the high number of uncontested state legislative races in Rhode Island. Those include:

• Lack of legislative professionalism and compensation: Ulricksen writes, “Rhode Island’s General Assembly sits near the bottom of the legislative professionalism scale. Lawmakers earn $20,922 a year for a demanding part-time job with minimal staff support. Anyone who wants to run for this job must first gather 50 to 100 signatures in about two weeks just to get on the ballot — never mind campaigning.”
• One-party dominance: Heading into the 2026 elections, Democrats have a 34-4 majority in the Rhode Island Senate and a 63-1–1 majority with one vacancy in the state House. Because Gov. Daniel McKee, who is currently running for re-election, is a Democrat, Rhode Island is one of 16 states with a Democratic trifecta.
• Redistricting: Rhode Island is one of 34 states in which the legislature plays the dominant role in state legislative redistricting. Ulricksen writes, “While dominant-party legislatures will gerrymander to preserve the dominant party’s electoral advantage, redistricting rules affirming jurisdictional boundaries can meaningfully mitigate that advantage.”

Click here to learn more about Rhode Island’s 2026 state Senate elections and here to learn more about the state House elections

Pamela Laiweneek, 45, was pulled over on Twin River Road in Lincoln shortly after 2 a.m. Friday and arrested on a warrant charging her with failing to appear in court, the Rhode Island State Police said in a media release.

Laiweneek was processed at the Lincoln Wood Barracks and taken to the Adult Correctional Institutions, according to the release.

WESTERLY, R.I. — When Washington Trust opened its doors in 1800, John Adams was president, George Washington had died less than a year earlier and the United States was only 24 years removed from the Declaration of Independence.

At the time, southern Rhode Island was growing. Farms, fishing communities, merchants and mills were developing around the Pawcatuck River, but residents had limited access to financial services.

“There were institutions in Providence and New Haven, but really nothing in the local communities,” said Michelle Kile, Washington Trust’s executive vice president and chief retail banking officer.

Reaching the nearest bank required a lengthy trip by horse or wagon. Local entrepreneurs petitioned the Rhode Island legislature to establish a bank closer to home—one that could safeguard money, extend credit and issue bank notes.

“Our founders had a clear vision,” Kile said.

The Washington Bank opened in Westerly on Aug. 22, 1800. Named in honor of the nation’s first president, the institution is now recognized as the country’s oldest community bank.

Its connection to George Washington extended beyond its name.

“We were one of the first institutions to put the likeness of George Washington on a piece of currency,” Kile said.

Standardized federal paper currency did not yet exist as it does today. Instead, state and local banks printed and circulated their own bank notes. Washington Trust says it was the first bank to place Washington’s likeness on currency—69 years before he appeared on a federally issued one-dollar bill.

The bank’s earliest operation was considerably smaller than the company Rhode Islanders know today.

“We started actually in a small room, believe it or not, in the Dixon Hotel, and we’ve grown since then,” Kile said. “We built our first establishment very close, and we’ve been in the same spot all that time.”

Growing alongside Rhode Island

Washington Trust endured the financial panics of the 19th century, the Civil War, two world wars, the Great Depression and the Great Recession.

Along the way, generations of employees and customers formed relationships that extended beyond banking.

“I have some great relationships, having worked here for 44 years, with my customers,” said Ann Cook, a Washington Trust branch manager and the company’s longest-serving employee. “I have longtime friends that I’ve met here. We are an institution in the community, and our customers really mean a lot to us.”

The bank opened a savings department in 1854 and established its first branch in Hope Valley in 1914. Its current main office at 23 Broad Street in Westerly was completed in 1925.

One part of the bank’s earliest history remains inside the headquarters: its historic vault.

The historic vault in the current Westerly branch. (WJAR)

When the current building was constructed, it was built around the preserved structure.

“Who has been there? What has this vault seen? What has it been through?” Kile said. “It’s just mind-blowing for me.”

The historic vault in the current Westerly branch. (WJAR)

From bank notes to digital banking

As the banking industry evolved, Washington Trust adapted to technology that its founders could hardly have imagined.

The company installed its first drive-up teller window in 1960. An online teller system began connecting its branches in 1976, and its first ATM—nicknamed “Martha,” after Martha Washington—was installed in 1985.

Washington Trust later introduced its website in 1999 and personal online banking in 2000. Customers can now conduct business through branches, computers, phones and mobile devices.

“Our purpose means something,” Kile said. “We are relevant. We’re providing a need for customers and for the community, and that’s the reason we’ve been able to stay here so long and be a Rhode Island-based bank for more than 225 years.”

Washington Trust celebrated its 225th anniversary in 2025. The company has grown from a small room in Westerly to 28 retail banking branches across Rhode Island and Mystic, Connecticut, along with mortgage and wealth-management offices in Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut.

The bank is continuing that growth with its 29th branch planned for Pawtucket and its 30th location in Bristol.