Shekarchi wins the speakership; some progressives abstain from leadership votes Published Wed Jan 06 2021 03:47:27 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) by Ian Donnis
Joe Shekarchi (D-Warwick), a longtime participant in Rhode Island politics, captured what is often called the most powerful political post in the state, easily ascending Tuesday as House speaker during an unusual legislative opening session that pointed to ongoing clashes between progressives and establishment Democrats.
With the House of Representatives meeting at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium due to the pandemic, Shekarchi won the support of 59 Democrats, while nine Republicans backed the House Minority Leader Blake Filippi, and four progressive Democrats abstained.
PROVIDENCE The 2021 Rhode Island legislative session opens Tuesday with COVID-19 still raging, vaccinations months away for much of the population and disruption still dominating almost every facet of life.
In a sign of the times: Rhode Island s legislators will not start the new session in their ornate chambers, which got new paint, new rugs and new leather upholstery only a year ago and $166,000 worth of plexiglass partitions in mid-pandemic.
They will instead meet, take their socially distanced oaths of office, and elect their leaders at Veterans Memorial Auditorium (for the House) and Rhode Island College s Sapinsley Hall (for the Senate).
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Lawmakers will not meet at the Rhode Island State House due to social distancing constraints. (Rachel Nunes/Patch)
PROVIDENCE, RI The Rhode Island General Assembly is set to convene for the first time in 2021 on Tuesday. Because of coronavirus restrictions, neither the House of Representatives nor the Senate will meet in the State House.
Members of the House are set to meet at 2 p.m. in Veterans Memorial Auditorium. Following the state s constitution, Marvin Abney, the senior representative from Newport, will preside over the election of a new speaker. The election will be held after the oath of office is administered by Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea. The oath will be administered to the new speaker by Supreme Court Justice Francis Flaherty.
The Rhode Island General Assembly opens its 2021 session Tuesday, Jan. 5.
Due to the need for social distance necessitated by COVID-19, the Assembly will not be meeting at the State House, which remains closed to the public.
The House of Representatives is scheduled to meet at 2 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Auditorium in Providence. In accordance with the state constitution, the senior representative from Newport, Rep. Marvin L. Abney (D-Dist. 73, Newport, Middletown), will preside until the election of a new speaker, which is scheduled after Secretary of State Nellie M. Gorbea administers the oath of office to the members. Supreme Court Justice Francis X. Flaherty will administer the oath to the elected speaker. In November, the House Democratic Caucus endorsed Majority Leader K. Joseph Shekarchi (D-Dist. 23, Warwick) for speaker. Gov. Gina M. Raimondo is also scheduled to offer remarks.