Tuesday’s Rhode Island primary featured a rare spotlight on Republican candidates. Cranston was the scene of a hard-fought mayoral campaign — one of the few places in the state with such high-profile GOP competition. The losing candidate, Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung, has been a bright spot for the Rhode Island GOP, but she’s been taken off the political battlefield, at least for now. Local Republicans have been trying without success for years to increase their meager representation in the General Assembly, where the party holds just 14 of 113 seats. Republicans also remain locked out of state and federal offices from Rhode Island. But supporters of former President Donald Trump have high hopes for his national campaign against Democrat Kamala Harris. So what does the party’s local leader have to say about the GOP presidential candidate? Can Rhode Island Republicans improve on their past performance? This week on Political Roundtable, I’m going in-depth with Rhode Island Republican Party Chairman Joe Powers.
This transcript has been edited for clarity.
Ian Donnis: Welcome back to the Public’s Radio.
Joe Powers: Happy to be here, Ian.
Donnis: Let’s start with Tuesday’s primary. The most notable race was for mayor in Cranston, where incumbent Ken Hopkins scored a lopsided 17 point victory over challenger Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung. Why do you think that race was so lopsided?
Powers: Well I’ll tell you what Ian, I think first off, Cranston as a whole, we had a very very low turnout in the area.
So it’s not a good representation of the entire city to start. But that being said, I think what Ken has actually brought to the city and what he’s been working on, his focus primarily in the area has been for the infrastructure of Cranston, which is kind of on the forefront of people’s minds in the state as it is. And people are seeing active change as compared to a background sort of thing that normally you would see in politics. People are actually seeing the change that they have going on. He hasn’t really gotten himself into any turmoil or anything along the lines, and I think he did a really good job staying positive in his campaign. He talked about what he was working on in Cranston, the work that was going to continue to go, and again, all of that is being seen by all the constituents in Cranston.
Donnis: Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung most notably knocked out House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello in a 2020 race for state representative in Cranston. Do you see her as a candidate for statewide office in 2026 now that she is out of competition for mayor in Cranston?
Powers: Yeah, I’ll tell you what, the good news is that we had in Cranston is either way that we went, we had two great candidates, people who have a pedigree in politics, especially in the Cranston area. So moving forward, I definitely have an idea in my head of where she could help out the party and help out the state of Rhode Island. Moving down the line, you don’t do four years up at the state house and not pick up on a couple of really good ideas, or more importantly, pick up on some really good concepts of how to get things done properly.
Donnis: Is that idea running statewide in 2026?
Powers: It very could be. Yeah. There’s definitely an opportunity there to help out with the state of Rhode Island. I mean, let’s be honest, we need all the help that we can get. And I think, you know, Chris Paplauskas stepping into her role or her seat or running for her seat is a fantastic fill in for the time. And I think he’s going to do a phenomenal job moving forward.
Donnis: Well, let’s switch gears and talk about, a little bit about presidential politics. Donald Trump continues to spread distrust about elections as part of his current campaign. Do you think that’s good or bad for our system of government?
Powers: Well, you know, I think it being brought to the forefront of what’s going on in distrust, it’s something that is kind of like the dirty little secret that not everybody in this world trust the government. I mean, they have a very low rating when it comes to trust. And I think that somebody bringing it up quite often and as much as they are, it makes people feel uncomfortable. Do I think that it goes, runs super deep? You and I have talked before, and I’ve told you I’m not a conspiracy theorist kind of person. I like to look at the facts, and I’ve done my own research, and I’ve taken a look at what I had available to me. And can we say that we should be 100 percent on board with what’s being done in politics? Well, the answer can’t be 100 percent no. There’s definitely going to be some sort of mistrust somewhere along the line.
Donnis: Well, we’ve seen how people like former Republican gubernatorial candidate, Ken Block has said, yes, there’s a need to tighten up and improve the election process, but he has completely ruled out the kind of widespread election fraud that Trump still clings to. So is it wrong for Trump to still perpetuate a false narrative about elections?
Powers: Well, I think out of sight, out of mind may come into mind that if we don’t continue to keep our focus on it, things could go a little sideways. There’s no doubt that things need to be improved when it comes to the election process. I firmly believe paper ballots. I think honestly, election day itself should be a holiday. I think we should be opening up RIPTA buses for people to have the ability to go. We have a very low voter turnout in the state of Rhode Island. So anything that you say moving forward regarding policies regarding any candidates, it’s not a complete representation of the state of Rhode Island. I think we should make it easier for people to come in. I don’t think our early voting mail ballot harvesting should be legal. I think we should make this as a one day holiday, open up the buses and have people driven around so that everyone gets an opportunity. And now everyone’s attention is going to be on it, which makes it a lot more difficult for somebody to kind of, you know, push the line a little too much.
Donnis: Former Vice President Dick Cheney is certainly not a liberal, and he says he’s going to be voting for Kamala Harris in November. He calls Trump a threat to the future or the republic. What’s your response to that?
Powers: Well, I’ll tell you what, that’s the beauty of being an American. You have the ability to do and say what you want. I’m not in the game of actually listening in on others. When I hear Taylor Swift was, you know, backing Kamala Harris, that’s not going to sway my vote one way or another. And I don’t think it should in the United States. Look, the actual meat in the bone here is, are we better off today than we were four years ago when Donald Trump was here with the economy and everything that was going on? Yeah, we had COVID and it wasn’t handled absolutely perfect, but I think that we did the best job that we could. The ultimate answer that people have to come up with is do we want another four years of the exact same that we’ve had with interest rates being so high, inflation being so high, the economy not working, and it all comes down to the kitchen table conversations. How much are people able to purchase for their families anymore? Can they afford school? Can they afford homes? I’m in the world of real estate. I’ve watched these numbers skyrocket, and it’s horrible watching some people who had a dream, had money saved up for all these years, only to come step up to be ready to buy a house, and suddenly they can’t afford it anymore. And what they can afford is not what they want, and I don’t think that’s fair. We need to get back to civility. We need to get back to where people have the opportunity to live the American dream.
Donnis: Let’s bring it back to Rhode Island. What, for the Rhode Island Republican Party, what would success look like in terms of the November election in terms of Rhode Island races?
Powers: Great question. I’m glad you asked too. You know, we have a very robust bench of people. It’s, you know, we’ve been a little shy on our bench as far as candidates are concerned. I know in 2022, we had north of 70 candidates who ran, myself included. This time around we’ve got less people coming, but with a lot of those people are second time around, they’ve learned a lot of stuff. I’m a strategy guy. I’m a foundational guy. So we took a look at the data that we had. We went back out and we actually put a little bit more quality to what we’re doing as far as the process and the procedure. We have some really good chances. We got Marie Hopkins out in Warwick. We got Jen Caputi, who’s running for the seat that I ran for in District 26. We have Dick Fascia out in Johnston. We have Nick Grasso out in Johnston. We have a lot of really good candidates who are really going to make some waves. And this time around they’ve got a solid, solid game plan and that’s what we’re really focusing on. And I can see Rhode Island picking up Rhode Island Republicans picking up quite a few seats.
Donnis: In the primary incumbents did very well, whether they were progressives like Enrique Sanchez or Cherie Cruz or more conservative Democrats like Charlene Lima and Sam Azzinaro. Does that make you concerned that voters will continue to favor incumbents in the November election?
Powers: I wouldn’t say concerned. I mean, Rhode Island is going to want what Rhode Island wants. I think it’s going to be incumbent upon us to actually get the message out to show people what the difference could be and what it should be. You know, there’s a lot of people up on Capitol Hill who have been there for a very long period of time. I’m from a school of thought that the longer that you’re there, the less effective you are, and the shorter time you’re there, you don’t have enough, you know, time under your belt to actually cause any real change. And I think what we need to do is first off, focus on what Rhode Island needs and make sure we have the right person. But that, again, Ian, comes right down to making sure we get people to the polls. I mean, you take a look at Enrique himself. You know, he won his race. Great job. But 500 people made the difference on whether or not he was going to run. You tell me is that a good representation for the city of Providence? I don’t think so. He’s got 13,000 people that could have voted and 500 of them showed up. Why?
Donnis: One challenge for Republicans is that some incumbent GOP lawmakers are not seeking re-election. One of those is state representative Patricia Morgan from West Warwick. She won the GOP primary to take on Democratic U.S.Senator Sheldon Whitehouse in November. We saw back in 2018 when Robert Flanders, a former Supreme Court justice, challenged Whitehouse in that race was called in about five minutes. I think Morgan faces an even higher hill to climb. So does that really make sense for her to run against White House rather than remaining a proven someone who can continue to win election to the general assembly?
Powers: You know, I got this question before, and I always come back to just the basics. Trying to keep emotion out of any of the answers is it’s her legal right to do so and do what she wish. She does have a very competent person running in her seat. What she wants to do in the future is to have a bigger effect on the state of Rhode Island than what she’s had now. And I congratulate her for pulling out the win. She did the work and right now it’s, I honestly feel it’s going to be compounded. More people in the state are going to see what somebody like Patricia Morgan, who has affected Coventry and West Warwick by representing them up on the hill. She’s going to have a more of a bigger playing field right now, and she has an opportunity here to make a difference. I am not from the school of thought that you just run nobody, but I’m also making sure that we’re just not running somebody for the sake of filling a spot. Do I feel like she could do it? She definitely can make an impact in this race right now. That’s going to make people at least stop and think about the direction that the state of Rhode Island. You got Sheldon Whitehouse who’s backing off-shore wind farms and these wind farms are breaking down. Half the time they’re not turning on, they’ve got pieces of shards all over the water, washing up on shore. You got higher you know, situations where whales and dolphins have beached themselves. People are going to start paying attention and, and Patricia Morgan will definitely be that person who will bring in that more to the forefront.
Donnis: Joe Powers in your day job. You’re a real estate agent. So I have to ask you for your perspective on the housing crisis. Rhode Island is not alone in facing the housing crisis, but it is trying to make some inroads. What do you think the state is doing well or not so well?
Powers: Well, I’ll tell you, first off, I’ll give you the basis of what I feel and what I’ve seen. And I just came from a meeting now where we were discussing when people talk about, we have no houses for people. We do. The problem that we have is we have a very bad economy. And because of what’s happening in the economy. Interest rates are going up. They’re still north of 5% which is, like I said, people are getting priced out of properties and people who would normally be selling their houses are saying, I’m not going to go after another house because I have a 2.3 percent interest rate right now. I don’t want to get a five or six percent because people who are moving on right now are looking at their forever home at the end. So these smaller houses that new families would be getting into are not made available. Do I think we need to build more houses? Well, I’m also in development. So yes, let’s go ahead and build. Let’s get some more, You’re going to increase the economy that way. However, do I think we have a shortage? It’s not for the fact that we don’t have enough doors it’s the economy is so bad is that people aren’t willing to sell and then get a higher rate to try and move into their house. Do I think the state is making the right moves to get this going? I don’t because it can’t be affected directly from the state. It’s something that’s federal. When the interest rates go up based on the inflation, the only one who affects inflation is Washington by printing and spending of money. That’s the problem that we run into.
Donnis: All right, I’ve got to hold you there because we’re out of time. Thank you so much for joining us. Rhode Island Republican Chairman Joe Powers.
Powers: Thank you, Ian.
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It’s good to be an incumbent in Rhode Island, regardless of whether you are a progressive or conservative Democrat. With one exception, incumbents prevailed in legislative primaries on Tuesday. The amount of competition for General Assembly seats is down this year, so what does the support for current officeholders tell us? You can read more about that in my TGIF column, posting around 4:00 this afternoon at thepublicsradio.org/TGIF and on what used to be known as Twitter @IanDon.
