Democratic socialist ousts Providence mayor in primary

Democratic socialist David Morales is projected to oust Providence Mayor Brett Smiley (D) from a Tuesday primary, according to Decision Desk HQ.

Morales, a state lawmaker, leads the incumbent by about 14 percentage points, per DDHQ.

The primary results in Rhode Island mark another win for the Democratic Party’s left flank, which has picked up key victories in local , House and Senate races across the country this year.

Morales, 27, is almost certain to win the general election in November for the solid blue seat.

Smiley, 47, was first elected as Providence’s mayor in 2022. He previously served as former Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo’s (D) chief of staff before becoming the state’s Department of Administration director.

Smily notched support from Raimondo, who served as Commerce secretary under former President Biden, as well as former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. Morales, meanwhile, was backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.)

Morales is set to join a growing class of democratic socialist mayors across the country, most notably New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

Janeese Lewis George, a member of the Washington, D.C., City Council, is on track to win her election for mayor in the nation’s capital this fall. In Los Angeles, Nithya Raman, a city council member, is running to oust Mayor Karen Bass (D).