Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16

Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16 is represented by Brandon Potter (D).

As of the 2020 Census, Rhode Island state representatives represented an average of 14,642 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 14,070 residents.

About the chamber

Members of the Rhode Island House of Representatives serve two-year terms and are not subject to term limits. Rhode Island legislators assume office the first Tuesday in January.^[1]

Qualifications

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

A candidate for the Rhode Island General Assembly must:^[2]

Be a U.S. citizen
Be a registered voter
Be at least 18 years of age
Be a state resident for at least 30 days preceding the election
Be a resident of the district the candidate is running to represent

Salaries

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

State legislative salaries, 2024^[3]
Salary	Per diem
$19,037/year	No per diem is paid.

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state legislatures

If there is a vacancy in the Rhode Island General Assembly, a special election must be held to fill the vacant seat. The secretary of state must call for an election to be held anywhere from 70 to 90 days after the vacancy occurred. No election can be held if the vacancy happens after the first Monday in February during an election year. The person elected to fill the seat serves for the remainder of the unfilled term.^[4]

See sources: Rhode Island Gen. Laws § 17-3-6

District map

Redistricting

2020 redistricting cycle

See also: Redistricting in Rhode Island after the 2020 census

Rhode Island enacted new legislative district boundaries on February 16, 2022, when Gov. Dan McKee (D) signed redistricting legislation approved by the General Assembly. The State House of Representatives passed the new maps by a vote of 57-6 and the State Senate approved them, 29-9, on February 15, 2022. In a press release issued after Gov. McKee signed the legislation, State Representative Robert Phillips (D), co-chair of the state's legislative Reapportionment Commission, said, "It was an honor and pleasure to work with such a dedicated group of individuals on this commission. I’m particularly proud of the fact that we obtained so much input from citizens around the state, holding our meetings in several cities and towns to make it more accessible to everyone. Reapportionment can be daunting and complex, but I’m glad we took everyone’s concerns into account and came up with a fair and equitable system of reapportionment.”^[5]^[6]^[7]^[8]

The Providence Journal's Patrick Anderson and Katherine Gregg wrote "Although some district boundaries changed a lot, the new maps did not put any incumbent General Assembly members in the same district, forcing them to run against each other. But the maps did draw some would-be challengers out of their current districts, potentially protecting incumbents from a tough reelection battle.^[9] Edward Fitzpatrick of the Boston Globe wrote that "critics have said both Democratic and Republican incumbents were allowed to shape their districts during private meetings with the state’s long-time redistricting consultant."^[10]

How does redistricting in Rhode Island work? In Rhode Island, both congressional and state legislative district boundaries are drawn by the Rhode Island General Assembly. These lines are subject to veto by the governor.^[11]

An 18-member advisory commission established in 2011 can recommend congressional and state legislative redistricting plans to the state legislature. The legislature may "adopt, modify, or ignore the commission's proposals." The composition of the commission is as follows:^[11]

The majority leader of the Rhode Island State Senate chooses four commissioners who are state legislators and three who are not, for a total of seven commissioners.
The majority leader of the Rhode Island House of Representatives chooses four commissioners who are state legislators and three who are not, for a total of seven commissioners.
The minority leader of the Rhode Island State Senate chooses two commissioners who are state legislators.
The minority leader of the Rhode Island House of Representatives chooses two commissioners who are state legislators.

The Rhode Island Constitution requires that state legislative districts be compact.^[11]

State statutes require that congressional and state legislative districts meet the following criteria:^[11]

Districts should be contiguous.
Districts should "reflect natural, historical, geographical, and municipal and other political lines, 'as well as the right of all Rhode Islanders to fair representation and equal access to the political process.'"
"The lines of state House, state Senate and congressional districts [should] coincide–or at least, if they do not overlap completely, they should avoid creating voting precincts with distinct ballot options where the precinct has fewer than 100 people."

Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16
until January 2, 2023

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16
starting January 3, 2023

Click a district to compare boundaries.

Elections

2024

General election

General election for Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16

Incumbent Brandon Potter defeated Deborah Leong in the general election for Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brandon Potter (D)	58.4	3,865
	Submit photo	Deborah Leong (R)	41.3	2,730
		Other/Write-in votes	0.3	18

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 6,613
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16

Incumbent Brandon Potter defeated Joseph Graziano in the Democratic primary for Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16 on September 10, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brandon Potter	76.4	792
	Submit photo	Joseph Graziano	23.6	245

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,037
= 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 election

Republican primary for Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16

Deborah Leong advanced from the Republican primary for Rhode Island House of Representatives District 16 on September 10, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Deborah Leong	100.0	741

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 741
= 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.