Election Results: RI Continues Mail Ballot Count

PROVIDENCE, RI — Rhode Islanders will have to wait a little longer to see the final results of Tuesday's general election. Not long past midnight, the state's Board of Elections announced that mail ballot counting would resume later Wednesday morning, with partial results published around 1 a.m.

It was a record-breaking election in Rhode Island, with more than 487,000 voters casting their ballot by mail, early in person or at the polls on Election Day, according to Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea's Office. This broke the previous record of 475,000 ballots set in 2008, according to the AP.

"We are so proud of each and every person who made their voices heard voting by mail, early in-person, or at their polling place on Election Day," Gorbea's office tweeted Tuesday night.

In Rhode Island's second congressional district, Republican candidate Robert Lancia held a slim lead over incumbent Jim Langevin until mail ballot counts were posted in the early hours of Wednesday morning, threatening the Democrat's two-decade tenure in the seat. In the first district, meanwhile, incumbent David Cicilline far outpaced his two independent opponents, garnering more than 60 percent of the vote. Late Tuesday night, the AP called the race in favor of Cicilline.

The Associated Press called two races less than half an hour after polls closed, declaring Joe Biden the winner in the presidential race and incumbent Sen. Jack Reed the winner in his District 1 race.

Meanwhile, in the race for the Rhode Island State House, Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung, wife of Cranston mayor and former gubernatorial candidate Allan Fung, pulled off an upset against House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello in a race called early by the AP. Read more about state house races here.

All results posted below are from the Rhode Island Board of Elections.

Read more: Election Results: Who's Leading Municipal Races In RI

Rhode Island only had one statewide ballot question this year, but it was a contentious one: whether to strike "and providence plantations" from the state's official name. It's been a decade since voters last voiced their opinions on the subject, when the measure was overwhelmingly defeated with 78 percent of voters in favor of leaving the name as it was. This year, advocates including Gov. Gina Raimondo, state lawmakers, community leaders and even the state's largest labor union have lobbied for the name change.

"Making this change would pay some respect to our ancestors who were forced into slavery, and would stop serving as a constant reminder to present-day Rhode Islanders of our painful past," said Providence Sen. Harold Metts, who introduced the resolution that put the question on the ballot.

The question was a tight race, with the "reject" camp holding a single-digit lead for much of the evening. With the addition of the mail ballots, however, it appears that Rhode Island will soon lose its ability to call itself the smallest state with the longest name.

Approve: 230,812 votes, 52.8%

• Polling place: 74073
• Mail ballots: 92125
• Emergency ballots: 64614

Reject: 206,008 votes, 847.2%

• Polling place: 95868
• Mail ballots: 48103
• Emergency ballots: 62037

President

Joseph Biden (D): 285,425 votes, 58.9%

• Polling place: 84899
• Mail ballots: 119319
• Emergency ballots: 81207

Donald J. Trump (R) incumbent: 189,544 votes, 39.1%

• Polling place: 105455
• Mail ballots: 27706
• Emergency ballots: 56383

Jo Jorgensen (Libertarian): 4716 votes, 1.0%

• Polling place: 2754
• Mail ballots: 979
• Emergency ballots: 983

Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente: 853 votes, 0.2%

• Polling place: 448
• Mail ballots: 230
• Emergency ballots: 175

Gloria La Riva: 771 votes, 0.2%

• Polling place: 380
• Mail ballots: 263
• Emergency ballots: 128

Brian Carroll: 716 votes, 0.1%

• Polling place: 332
• Mail ballots: 223
• Emergency ballots: 161

Write-in: 2552 votes, 0.5%

U.S. Senate

Jack Reed (D) incumbent: 305,355 votes, 66.0%

• Polling place: 95242
• Mail ballots: 123685
• Emergency ballots: 86428

Allen Waters (R): 156,602 votes, 33.8%

• Polling place: 86539
• Mail ballots: 21518
• Emergency ballots: 48545

Write-in: 769 votes, 0.2%

U.S. House, District 1

David Cicilline (D) incumbent: 150729 votes, 70.5%

• Polling place: 45835
• Mail ballots: 60390
• Emergency ballots: 44504

Frederick Wysocki (I): 34247 votes, 16.0%

• Polling place: 16771
• Mail ballots: 5964
• Emergency ballots: 11512

Jeffrey Edward Lemire (I): 27450 votes, 12.8%

• Polling place: 13814
• Mail ballots: 4414
• Emergency ballots: 9222

Write-in: 1470 votes, 0.7%

U.S. House, District 2

James Langevin (D) incumbent: 140023 votes, 57.6%

• Polling place: 45591
• Mail ballots: 57470
• Emergency ballots: 36962

Robert Lancia (R): 102729 votes, 42.2%

• Polling place: 56945
• Mail ballots: 15746
• Emergency ballots: 30038

Write-in: 517 votes, 0.2%