Rhode Island Attorney General election, 2022 (September 13 Democratic primary)
- Primary date: Sept. 13
- Mail-in registration deadline: Aug. 14
- Online reg. deadline: Aug. 14
- In-person reg. deadline: Aug. 14
- Early voting starts: Aug. 24
- Early voting ends: Sept. 12
- Poll times: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Absentee/mail-in deadline: Sept. 13
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Rhode Island Attorney General |
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Democratic primary Republican primary General election |
Election details |
Filing deadline: July 15, 2022 |
Primary: September 13, 2022 General: November 8, 2022 Pre-election incumbent(s): Peter Neronha (Democratic) |
How to vote |
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voting in Rhode Island |
Ballotpedia analysis |
Federal and state primary competitiveness State executive elections in 2022 Impact of term limits in 2022 State government trifectas State government triplexes Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2022 |
Rhode Island executive elections |
Governor Lieutenant Governor |
A Democratic Party primary took place on September 13, 2022, in Rhode Island to determine which candidate would earn the right to run as the party's nominee in the state's attorney general election on November 8, 2022.
Incumbent Peter Neronha advanced from the Democratic primary for Attorney General of Rhode Island.
This page focuses on Rhode Island's Democratic Party Attorney General primary. For more in-depth information on Rhode Island's Republican Attorney General primary and the general election, see the following pages:
- Rhode Island Attorney General election, 2022 (September 13 Republican primary)
- Rhode Island Attorney General election, 2022

Candidates and election results
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Attorney General of Rhode Island
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | ![]() | Peter Neronha ![]() | 100.0 | 94,665 |
Total votes: 94,665 | ||||
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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. | ||||
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State profile
Demographic data for Rhode Island | ||
---|---|---|
Rhode Island | U.S. | |
Total population: | 1,055,607 | 316,515,021 |
Land area (sq mi): | 1,034 | 3,531,905 |
Race and ethnicity** | ||
White: | 81.1% | 73.6% |
Black/African American: | 6.5% | 12.6% |
Asian: | 3.2% | 5.1% |
Native American: | 0.5% | 0.8% |
Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
Two or more: | 2.8% | 3% |
Hispanic/Latino: | 13.6% | 17.1% |
Education | ||
High school graduation rate: | 86.2% | 86.7% |
College graduation rate: | 31.9% | 29.8% |
Income | ||
Median household income: | $56,852 | $53,889 |
Persons below poverty level: | 17.3% | 11.3% |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Rhode Island. **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. |
Presidential voting pattern
Rhode Island voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, one is located in Rhode Island, accounting for 0.5 percent of the total pivot counties.[1]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Rhode Island had one Boomerang Pivot County, 4.00 percent of all Boomerang Pivot Counties.
More Rhode Island coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Rhode Island
- United States congressional delegations from Rhode Island
- Public policy in Rhode Island
- Endorsers in Rhode Island
- Rhode Island fact checks
- More...
Election analysis=
Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.
- Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
- Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
- State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
- Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.
Presidential elections
Cook PVI by congressional district
Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index for Rhode Island, 2022 | |||
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District | Incumbent | Party | PVI |
Rhode Island's 1st | David Cicilline | ![]() |
D+12 |
Rhode Island's 2nd | Open | ![]() |
D+4 |
2020 presidential results by 2022 congressional district lines
2020 presidential results in congressional districts based on 2022 district lines, Rhode Island[2] | ||||
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District | Joe Biden ![]() |
Donald Trump ![]() | ||
Rhode Island's 1st | 63.8% | 34.7% | ||
Rhode Island's 2nd | 56.1% | 42.4% |
2012-2020
How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2012, 2016, and 2020 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:
County-level voting pattern categories | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | |||||||
Status | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | ||||
Solid Democratic | D | D | D | ||||
Trending Democratic | R | D | D | ||||
Battleground Democratic | D | R | D | ||||
New Democratic | R | R | D | ||||
Republican | |||||||
Status | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 | ||||
Solid Republican | R | R | R | ||||
Trending Republican | D | R | R | ||||
Battleground Republican | R | D | R | ||||
New Republican | D | D | R |
Following the 2020 presidential election, 84.5% of Rhode Islanders lived in one of the state's four Solid Democratic counties, which voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in every election from 2012 to 2020, and 15.5% lived in Kent County, the state's one Battleground Democratic county. Overall, Rhode Island was Solid Democratic, having voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2012, Hillary Clinton (D) in 2016, and Joe Biden (D) in 2020. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in Rhode Island following the 2020 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.
Rhode Island county-level statistics, 2020 | |||||||
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Solid Democratic | 4 | 84.5% | |||||
Battleground Democratic | 1 | 15.5% | |||||
Total voted Democratic | 5 | 100.0% | |||||
Total voted Republican | 0 | 0.0% |
Historical voting trends
Rhode Island presidential election results (1900-2020)
- 21 Democratic wins
- 10 Republican wins
Year | 1900 | 1904 | 1908 | 1912 | 1916 | 1920 | 1924 | 1928 | 1932 | 1936 | 1940 | 1944 | 1948 | 1952 | 1956 | 1960 | 1964 | 1968 | 1972 | 1976 | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 | 1992 | 1996 | 2000 | 2004 | 2008 | 2012 | 2016 | 2020 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winning Party | R | R | R | D | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | R | D | D | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
Statewide elections
This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.
U.S. Senate elections
The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in Rhode Island.
U.S. Senate election results in Rhode Island | ||
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Race | Winner | Runner up |
2020 | 66.6%![]() |
33.4%![]() |
2018 | 61.6%![]() |
38.4%![]() |
2014 | 70.6%![]() |
29.3%![]() |
2012 | 64.8%![]() |
35.0%![]() |
2008 | 73.4%![]() |
26.6%![]() |
Average | 66.6 | 33.4 |
Gubernatorial elections
- See also: Governor of Rhode Island
The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in Rhode Island.
Gubernatorial election results in Rhode Island | ||
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Race | Winner | Runner up |
2018 | 52.6%![]() |
37.2%![]() |
2014 | 40.7%![]() |
36.2%![]() |
2010 | 36.1%![]() |
33.6%![]() |
2006 | 51.0%![]() |
49.0%![]() |
2002 | 54.8%![]() |
45.2%![]() |
Average | 47.0 | 40.2 |
State partisanship
Congressional delegation
The table below displays the partisan composition of Rhode Island's congressional delegation as of November 2022.
Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Rhode Island, November 2022 | |||
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Party | U.S. Senate | U.S. House | Total |
Democratic | 2 | 2 | 4 |
Republican | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Vacancies | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total | 2 | 2 | 4 |
State executive
The table below displays the officeholders in Rhode Island's top four state executive offices as of November 2022.
State executive officials in Rhode Island, November 2022 | |
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Office | Officeholder |
Governor | ![]() |
Lieutenant Governor | ![]() |
Secretary of State | ![]() |
Attorney General | ![]() |
State legislature
The tables below highlight the partisan composition of the Rhode Island State Legislature as of November 2022.
Rhode Island State Senate
Party | As of November 2022 | |
---|---|---|
Democratic Party | 33 | |
Republican Party | 5 | |
Vacancies | 0 | |
Total | 38 |
Rhode Island House of Representatives
Party | As of November 2022 | |
---|---|---|
Democratic Party | 65 | |
Republican Party | 10 | |
Independent | 0 | |
Vacancies | 0 | |
Total | 75 |
Trifecta control
As of November 2022, Rhode Island was a Democratic trifecta, with majorities in both chambers of the state legislature and control of the governorship. The table below displays the historical trifecta status of the state.
Rhode Island Party Control: 1992-2022
Thirteen years of Democratic trifectas • No Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Governor | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | I | I | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
Senate | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
House | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
Demographics
The table below details demographic data in Rhode Island and compares it to the broader United States as of 2019.
Demographic Data for Rhode Island | ||
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Rhode Island | United States | |
Population | 1,052,567 | 308,745,538 |
Land area (sq mi) | 1,033 | 3,531,905 |
Race and ethnicity** | ||
White | 80.5% | 72.5% |
Black/African American | 6.8% | 12.7% |
Asian | 3.4% | 5.5% |
Native American | 0.5% | 0.8% |
Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.2% |
Other (single race) | 5.5% | 4.9% |
Multiple | 3.3% | 3.3% |
Hispanic/Latino | 15.4% | 18% |
Education | ||
High school graduation rate | 88.8% | 88% |
College graduation rate | 34.2% | 32.1% |
Income | ||
Median household income | $67,167 | $62,843 |
Persons below poverty level | 12.4% | 13.4% |
Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2010). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2014-2019). | ||
**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
Rhode Island | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' presidential results by congressional district for 2020, 2016, and 2012," accessed September 9, 2022
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