Rhode Island's Congressional Delegation to Remain All-Male and Vulnerable Incumbents Advance in New Hampshire

Primary elections were held yesterday in Delaware, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island, and the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP), a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University, is tracking results for women candidates in these races. Full results are available on the Election Analysis page on the CAWP website; there is still one race featuring a woman candidate that remains too close to call, so this page will update as results are determined. Complete context about women in the 2022 elections, including candidate lists, summaries, and historical comparisons, is available via CAWP's Election Watch.

Among the most notable results for women:

• Women congressional incumbents advanced to the general election in New Hampshire but remain vulnerable in their bids for re-election.
  • Incumbent U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D) won the Democratic nomination to seek re-election in a general election contest currently rated as “Lean Democratic” by Cook Political Report. New Hampshire is one of four states currently represented by two women in the U.S. Senate; the others are Minnesota, Nevada, and Washington.
  • Incumbent U.S. Representative Ann McLane Kuster (D) is seeking re-election in NH-02. She was unopposed in the Democratic primary and will run for re-election in a contest currently rated as "Lean Democratic" by Cook Political Report.
• Karoline Leavitt (R) won the Republican nomination to challenge incumbent U.S. Representative Chris Pappas (D) in NH-01, a contest currently rated as a Democratic toss-up by Cook Political Report. If successful in November, Leavitt could become the youngest woman elected to the U.S. Congress.
• While 2 (2D) women filed as candidates for U.S. House seats in Rhode Island, none were successful, all but ensuring that Rhode Island’s congressional delegation will remain all male in 2023. The last and only woman to serve in the U.S. Congress from Rhode Island was Claudine Schneider (R), who served in the U.S. House from 1981 to 1991.
• Ashley Kalus (R) won the Republican nomination for governor of Rhode Island. She will challenge incumbent Governor Dan McKee (D) in a general election contest currently rated as “Solid Democrat” by Cook Political Report. Incumbent Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea (D), who was term-limited in her current role, ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination for governor.
• In Rhode Island, incumbent Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos (D) won the Democratic nomination for re-election. Upon her appointment to the position in 2021, Matos, who is Afro-Latina, became the first Black woman and the second Latina to serve in statewide elective executive office in Rhode Island.
• In Delaware, incumbent State Auditor Kathleen McGuiness (D) was defeated in the Democratic primary by Lydia York (D). Earlier this year, McGuiness was convicted of three misdemeanors; she has not yet been sentenced. York will face Janice Lorrah (R) – who was unopposed in the Republican primary – in an all-woman open-seat general election contest. If York is successful in November, she will be the first Black woman to be state auditor and the second Black woman to be elected to statewide executive office in Delaware. 

For more information, see the full analysis of how women fared in yesterday's contests on our Election Analysis page. Complete context about women in the 2022 elections can be found on CAWP's Election Watch.