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Race For The Presidency
Winning the 2008 Nomination
By Rhodes Cook |
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Rhode Island may be located in the midst of New England, but its small size could leave it off the beaten path in the rush of March 4 primaries.
The primary is open to registered voters in each party plus independents (known as "unaffiliated" in Rhode Island). the latter automatically become members of the party in which they cast a primary ballot, although they can change back to unaffiliated status as they leave the polling place. As of September 2006, there were 748,654 registered voters in Rhode Island—263,758 Democrats, 77,578 Republicans, and 407,318 independents.
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DEMOCRATS |
REPUBLICANS |
CALENDAR
Primary Date
(polling hours) |
March 4
(polls open by 9 a.m.; close at 9 p.m.) |
March 4
(polls open by 9 a.m.; close at 9 p.m.) |
| Filing Deadline |
Dec. 7, 2007 |
Dec. 7, 2007 |
| Filing Procedure |
Candidates must provide the secretary of state written notification of their intention to run in the primary by Dec. 7, 2007. Thereafter, petitions signed by 1,000 registered voters must be filed with the election boards in the towns or cities in which they were obtained by Dec. 26, 2007. |
| THE DELEGATES |
| Number (% of national total) |
32 (0.7%) |
20 (0.8%) |
| Distribution: |
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By district |
13 (6 or 7 per district) |
17 (8 or 9 per district) |
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At-Large |
5 |
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Pledged PEOs |
3 |
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RNC members |
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3 |
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Superdelegates |
10 |
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| Method of Allocation |
Proportional—15% of the vote needed to win a share of the statewide or district delegates. |
Proportional—15% of the statewide vote needed to win a share of the total number of district delegates.
Note: The Republican National Committee tentatively assigned Rhode Island 21 delegates, but the state party lists its total as 20. |
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