This may be the last time we ever crunch presidential election results by congressional district for Rhode Island, because the Ocean State is on track to lose a seat when reapportionment data from the 2020 census is released, turning it into an at-large jurisdiction like fellow New England state Vermont.
For now, we still have two districts to deal with, and the results show a continuation of a long-standing pattern: The 1st Congressional District, which occupies the eastern slice of Rhode Island and contains a slightly larger portion of the capital of Providence, was once again considerably bluer than the 2nd District in the western half of the state.
The 1st, represented by Democratic Rep. David Cicilline, went for Joe Biden 64-35 after backing Hillary Clinton 61-35 in 2016, while the 2nd, occupied by Democratic Rep. Jim Langevin, supported Biden by a smaller 56-43 margin. That, however, was a bigger improvement on Clinton's 51-44 win four years ago. (Click here for a full-size version of our map of these results.)
Both members of Congress easily won reelection—Cicilline didn't even face a Republican opponent. However, if they were to face off in a 2022 primary, the vocally progressive Cicilline would likely have the advantage over the more conservative Langevin, who describes himself as "pro-life." Langevin may therefore prefer a different race, such as the open-seat contest for governor, which might host a more crowded primary that could allow someone with a profile like his to win with just a plurality.
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