The 2026 general election is right around the corner and very soon voters will be going to the polls. Already many have made their choices via early voting (nearly 2000 in Bristol and 1000 in Warren). In today’s Common Ground, we’ll discuss our opinions on the importance of this election, what we expect as outcomes and what that could mean for Rhode Island and specifically for Bristol.

Mike Proto: More of the same I’m afraid
This Rhode Island election could turn out to be one of the most boring on record, as every statewide race except for Lt. Governor is comfortably in the hands of the Democrats. This year features a decent number of “independent” candidates running for office, from Ken Block for governor down to several state representative, state senator, and local city and town seats. And while these candidates may call themselves independents, for the most part they’re simply Republicans calling themselves independents because they do not want to attach themselves to the Republican party, which is completely irrelevant and powerless where we live. History has shown this political stunt will fail in most places, but it has seen a decent amount of success in Bristol, where uninformed voters have fallen for this trick for the past few elections.

After this election, the faces in town leadership in Bristol will look almost the same. An outlier is the town council race in Warren, where 3 Democrats and 2 Republicans posing as independents are running. Will voters stay the course and keep the town council firmly in Democratic control or will these two so-called “independent” candidates hoodwink voters into believing they’re truly independents which would change the complexion of the town council.

Another interesting race is the Bristol-Warren School Committee, where the seats are officially “non-partisan”, but it’s easy to see that 2 of the 4 candidates are clearly Democrats while the other 2 are clearly Republicans. With only 3 open seats, we’ll get to see which party wins the majority.

The final part of the ballot that gets very little attention is the back of the sheet, which this year features 5 bond questions that are pretty much non-controversial, and if past history is any indicator, all 5 questions will be overwhelmingly approved, with many voters not even taking the time to flip their ballot over and vote on them.

Craig Evans: Change may be more likely than we think
Mr. Proto argues that Election 2026 will be business as usual: Democrats will cruise to another easy win and little of substance will change. I disagree. The polls, the open seats, and the ballot itself point to genuine opportunities for shifts at the top of state government and on the spending questions that will shape Rhode Island’s fiscal future.
Start with the governor’s race. This is an open seat after incumbent Dan McKee lost the Democratic primary to Helena Foulkes. Recent polling shows Foulkes leading, but the race is far from settled. She sits in the high 30s to mid-40s, independent Ken Block has climbed into the high 20s to mid-30s, and Republican Aaron Guckian trails in the teens. The gap between Foulkes and Block has narrowed from roughly 25 points in the summer to single digits. Combined, the non-Democratic share remains competitive, and double-digit undecideds still exist. In a three-way contest, late shifts among independents—who form a large share of the Rhode Island electorate—can produce outcomes that pure partisan projections miss.

The lieutenant governor’s race is even tighter. Incumbent Democrat Sabina Matos and Republican John Loughlin are essentially tied in the most recent statewide polls (roughly 43 percent each). In the Bristol/Newport region, where we have seen solid historical turnout, Loughlin has posted clearer leads. A Republican win here would break a long pattern of Democratic dominance in statewide executive offices. This is what small change looks like. A Block win would bring mega change.
Then there are the ballot questions. Voters will decide five statewide bond measures totaling roughly $600 million for higher education, housing, economic infrastructure, cultural projects, and green-economy initiatives. Rhode Island voters have generally approved bonds in recent cycles, but margins vary and the total ask is historically large. In 2024 we saw clear differences in support across questions, along with consistent undervote rates of roughly 10 percent or more. When voters skip or split on spending measures, final margins tighten. Fiscal concerns and the scale of this package create conditions for closer-than-expected results on one or more questions.

Turnout patterns reinforce the possibility of movement. Bristol and Warren have shown solid participation in recent cycles—around 70 percent in the 2024 presidential year and competitive midterm numbers in 2022. Statewide early voting is already underway, with tens of thousands of ballots cast in the first week-plus, outpacing the comparable 2022 midterm pace.

None of this guarantees upheaval. Democrats remain favored in most statewide contests. But “favored” is not the same as “foregone.” An open governor’s race with a rising independent, a statistical dead heat for lieutenant governor, and a large slate of spending questions that historically see both solid support and measurable drop-off create more room for real movement than a simple “Democrats will prevail again” narrative allows.

Rhode Islanders who want change—or at least a clearer test of the status quo—have races and questions worth watching closely on November 3. The data suggest this election does not have to be just more of the same.

Possible Common Ground:
With this being a non-presidential election year, very few competitive statewide races and considerable voter apathy lurking, our mutual fear is that 2026 could go down as one of the smallest statewide voter turnouts in history. This should concern every citizen not only in Bristol, but in the entire state. Particularly because the stakes are so high even though each of our points-of-view differ.

One of the greatest things about living in the United States is the right to vote, and unfortunately far too many people in our town and in our state do not exercise that right on a regular basis. The same goes for running for elected office, where many people have grown tired of the harsh political rhetoric and races become more of a mudslinging match than a substantiative debate on our most pressing issues.

Politics is not for the faint of heart but we both believe something needs to be done. Maybe it’s time for term limits or more non-partisan elections. Then maybe those with the desire to serve will choose to do so because they believe they have a chance. One very scary statistic is that 82% of 2026 elections in RI are uncontested. This is a situation begging for reform.

In 2028 when a new administration in Washington gets elected, perhaps we can go back to the days of bipartisanship and working across the aisle. When that day comes, our country, our state, and our town will be all the better for it. But of course, if the results of the 2026 election led to more partisan bickering and unsubstantiated claims, this desire for calm may be checked and the pursuit for common ground further obstructed.

In the meantime, let’s all become informed about the choice in front of us. The Governor and Lieutenant Governor races are more important this time than in years past. It’s your civic duty, so VOTE.

The Common Ground column has been created to provide readers a thorough examination of issues important to the Bristol community. While often having different opinions, Craig Evans’ and Mike Proto’s passion for improving the dialogue during these partisan times has brought them together in the search for common ground. Please email comments and suggestions to commongroundeastbay@gmail.com.