Latinos Win Primaries and Get Ready for Historic General Elections

By Tomas Avila
10/05/01

By a margin of 14 votes, Stella G. Brien yesterday won the Democratic Primary to fill the state
House of Representatives District 62 seat that became vacant on the death of Barbara C.
Burlingame, who had held the position since 1987. The final tally, including absentee ballots,
was 317-303, or 51 percent to 49 percent, according to the Woonsocket Board of Canvassers.

Brien's victory in the primary virtually guarantees she will replace Burlingame in the General
Assembly because there are no other District 62 candidates for the November election ballot.
Brien will also become the third Latina in the Legislature, joining Rep. Anastasia Williams,
Providence District 9, and Luis “Leon” Tejada, Providence District 18.

Meanwhile in Central Falls, in a three-way race among incumbent Rose Marie Canavan and
challengers Ricardo Patino and Russell Rocheleau. Ricardo Patino was the top vote-getter in that
ward with 226 votes, defeating incumbent Canavan. Official tallies showed that 34.56 percent of
the registered voters in Ward 3 visited the polls.

Patino, beaten by Canavan by fewer than 90 votes two years ago, became the first Latino to top
the ballot in any city election, notching 227 votes to 176 for one-term incumbent Canavan.

While Brien and Patino were winning their primary elections, waiting in the wings for the
General Election were Grizzell Rodriguez candidate for Woonsocket City Council at Large and
Alido Baldera, candidate for Central Falls Ward 1 City Council. Rodriguez will try to become
the first Latina City Council Woman in a field of 14 candidates at large, while Baldera will try to
defeat incumbent Jim Noury in the General Elections

The primary results sets an interesting scenario for the Latino community for the November 6
General Elections. The Latinos community awaits the opportunity to elect 4 candidates to elected
offices in Central Falls and Woonsocket, and add muscle to their political empowerment across
the state.

Information released by the 2000 U.S. Census Bureau, shows that Political power in Rhode
Island is shifting back to its roots in the ethnic neighborhoods of Providence and the Latino
community, is poised to play a big role in the political arena into the new millennium. The data
shows that the state's Latino population makes up 40 percent of the total population in 5 of the 50
Senatorial districts, and 6 of the 100 House.

Those numbers follow a decade in which the state's Latino population grew 50 percent, to nearly
90,826 people, even as the state's total population declined slightly, according to the U.S. Census
Bureau estimates. To put it another way: Latinos made up 4.5 percent of the state's population in
1990, but nearly 9 percent in 2000.
From 1990 to 2000, the U.S. Census Bureau reports the Latino population in Rhode Island grew
by 50.3%, from 45,752 to 90,820. This growth raised the Latino community to 9% of the state's
total population. Estimates predict that by the year 2010, the state's Latino population will grow
to 133,000 accounting for 10.5% of the states total population.