Mayoral election in Providence, Rhode Island (2026)
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← 2022
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| 2026 Providence elections |
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| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: June 24, 2026 |
| Primary election: September 8, 2026 General election: November 3, 2026 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: Mayor |
| Total seats up: 1 (click here for other city elections) |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2026 |
The city of Providence, Rhode Island, is holding a general election for mayor on November 3, 2026. A primary is scheduled for September 8, 2026. The filing deadline for this election is June 24, 2026.
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
As of 2026, Providence has term limits for the position of mayor. Mayors can serve two consecutive four-year terms and can run again after a four year break.
Ballotpedia comprehensively covers the 100 largest cities in the United States by population. Our coverage also includes mayors, city councils, and district attorneys in the 32 state capitals that are not already part of our largest cities coverage. Please note that there may be more offices on the ballot in this capital city than what is listed on this page.
Elections
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Note: Ballotpedia will add the candidate list for this election once we have it.
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Candidate profiles
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Mayoral partisanship
Providence has a Democratic mayor. As of April 2026, the mayors of 33 state capitals are affiliated with the Democratic Party, seven are Republicans, two are independents, and two are nonpartisan. The partisan affiliation of six state capital mayors is unknown. While most mayoral elections in state capital cities are nonpartisan, most officeholders are affiliated with a political party.
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Take our candidate survey
- See also: Survey
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Past elections
See also: Mayoral election in Providence, Rhode Island (2022)
General election
General election for Mayor of Providence
Brett Smiley (D) won election in the general election for Mayor of Providence on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Brett Smiley (D) | 94.1 | 28,351 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 5.9% | 1,787 | ||
| Total votes: 30,138 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Wilbur Jennings Jr. (Independent)
Democratic primary
Democratic primary for Mayor of Providence
Brett Smiley (D) defeated Gonzalo Cuervo (D) and Nirva LaFortune (D) in the Democratic primary for Mayor of Providence on September 13, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Brett Smiley | 41.8 | 9,025 |
| Gonzalo Cuervo | 36.6 | 7,905 | ||
| Nirva LaFortune | 21.5 | 4,643 | ||
| Total votes: 21,573 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary
The Republican primary scheduled for September 13, 2022, was canceled.
General election
General election for Mayor of Providence
Incumbent Jorge Elorza (D) defeated Dianne Witman (Independent) and Jeffrey Lemire (Independent) in the general election for Mayor of Providence on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Jorge Elorza (D) | 63.6 | 26,935 | |
| Dianne Witman (Independent) | 33.1 | 14,016 | ||
 | Jeffrey Lemire (Independent) | 2.8 | 1,172 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.5% | 212 | ||
| Total votes: 42,335 (100% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary
Democratic primary for Mayor of Providence
Incumbent Jorge Elorza (D) defeated Kobi Dennis (D) and Robert Derobbio (D) in the Democratic primary for Mayor of Providence on September 12, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Jorge Elorza | 57.4 | 13,363 | |
| Kobi Dennis | 23.3 | 5,425 | ||
| Robert Derobbio | 19.3 | 4,493 | ||
| Total votes: 23,2810 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
About the city
- See also: Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island. As of 2020, its population was 190,934.
City government
- See also: Mayor-council government
The city of Providence utilizes a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body while the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.[1]
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Providence, Rhode Island | ||
|---|---|---|
| Providence | Rhode Island | |
| Population | 190,934 | 1,097,379 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 18 | 1,033 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 53.2% | 79% |
| Black/African American | 16.1% | 6.5% |
| Asian | 5.6% | 3.5% |
| Native American | 0.7% | 0.4% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.2% | 0.1% |
| Other (single race) | 16.4% | 5.6% |
| Multiple | 7.8% | 4.9% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 43.5% | 15.9% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 82.7% | 89.2% |
| College graduation rate | 32.3% | 35% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $49,065 | $70,305 |
| Persons below poverty level | 23% | 11.6% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2015-2020). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
See also
| Providence, Rhode Island | Rhode Island | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
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External links
Footnotes
