PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Jan. 25, 2008)-- More than 180 Rhode Islanders gathered enough signatures to run for presidential delegate in the state’s March 4 primary, Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis announced today.
One-hundred-and-eighty-four people qualified to run along side the presidential candidates they hope to represent at the Democratic and Republican conventions this summer.
People had to collect the signatures of at least 150 eligible Rhode Island voters in order to qualify to appear on the ballot. More than 250 people had filed the necessary paperwork with Mollis to run for delegate. The secretary of state’s office certified more than 30,000 signatures in all.
“The overwhelming response we received clearly shows that voters and the presidential campaigns believe Rhode Island has an important role to play in selecting the next president,” said Mollis.
Among the prominent Rhode Islanders who qualified to run are Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian as a Rudy Giuliani delegate, Governor Carcieri as a Mitt Romney delegate, former Lt. Gov. Charlie Fogarty as a Barack Obama delegate, former Providence Mayor Joe Paolino as a Hillary Clinton delegate and House Minority Leader Bob Watson as a John McCain delegate.
Among the Democrats, Hillary Clinton led the way with 31 Rhode Islanders competing to represent her at the convention Aug. 25-28 in Denver, Colo. Democratic voters will elect 13 delegates and 3 alternates.
Republican Mike Huckabee led all candidates with 41 certified delegates hoping to go to the Republican convention Sept. 1-4 in St. Paul, Minn. Republican voters will elect 17 delegates and 17 alternatives.
The next milestone in the state’s presidential primary calendar is Feb. 1, when Secretary of State Mollis will hold a public lottery at the State House to determine the order in which the presidential and delegate candidates will appear on the Democratic and Republican ballots.
Feb. 2 is the deadline for registering to vote in the March 4 primary. You must be at least 18 years of age, a resident of Rhode Island and have a valid social security number or Rhode Island driver’s license.
Secretary of State Mollis is committed to making it easier for Rhode Islanders to vote, helping businesses grow and making government more open and accessible. To see the final signature tallies for every delegate candidate, visit www.sec.state.ri.us/candidates/presdelegates/.