# 2020 United States presidential election in Rhode Island

Elections in Rhode Island :
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State government
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Gubernatorial elections
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House of Representatives elections
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Ballot measures
2020
Question 1 :
Providence
Mayoral elections
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vte :
The 2020 United States presidential election in Rhode Island was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, as part of the 2020 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. Rhode Island voters chose electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote, pitting the Republican Party's nominee, incumbent President Donald Trump, and running mate Vice President Mike Pence against Democratic Party nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden, and his running mate California Senator Kamala Harris. Rhode Island has four electoral votes in the Electoral College.
Rhode Island became one of three states where Biden won every county during the election, the other two being Massachusetts and Hawaii.
Rhode Island voted 17% more Democratic than the national average.

## Primary elections

The primary elections were originally scheduled for April 28, 2020. On March 23, they were moved to June 2 due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic.

### Republican primary

Donald Trump won the Republican primary, and received all of the state's 19 delegates to the 2020 Republican National Convention.

### Democratic primary

2020 Rhode Island Democratic presidential primary :
| Candidate | Votes | % | Delegates |
| Joe Biden | 79,728 | 76.67 | 25 |
| Bernie Sanders (withdrawn) | 15,525 | 14.93 | 1 |
| Elizabeth Warren (withdrawn) | 4,479 | 4.31 | |
| Andrew Yang (withdrawn) | 802 | 0.77 | |
| Tulsi Gabbard (withdrawn) | 651 | 0.63 | |
| Write-in votes | 936 | 0.90 | |
| Uncommitted | 1,861 | 1.79 | |
| Total | 103,982 | 100% | 26 |

## General election
### Predictions

| Source | Ranking | As of |
| The Cook Political Report | Safe D | September 10, 2020 |
| Inside Elections | Safe D | September 4, 2020 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball | Safe D | July 14, 2020 |
| Politico | Safe D | September 8, 2020 |
| RCP | Safe D | August 3, 2020 |
| Niskanen | Likely D | July 26, 2020 |
| CNN | Safe D | August 3, 2020 |
| The Economist | Safe D | September 2, 2020 |
| CBS News | Likely D | August 16, 2020 |
| 270towin | Safe D | August 2, 2020 |
| ABC News | Safe D | July 31, 2020 |
| NPR | Likely D | August 3, 2020 |
| NBC News | Likely D | August 6, 2020 |
| 538 | Safe D | September 9, 2020 |

### Polling
#### Aggregate polls

| Source of poll aggregation | Dates administered | Dates updated | Joe Biden Democratic | Donald Trump Republican | Other/ Undecided | Margin |
| FiveThirtyEight | until November 2, 2020 | November 3, 2020 | 62.9% | 32.4% | 4.7% | Biden +30.6 |

#### Polls

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Donald Trump Republican | Joe Biden Democratic | Jo Jorgensen Libertarian | Other | Undecided |
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Oct 20 – Nov 2, 2020 | 566 (LV) | ± 5.5% | 36% | 62% | - | – | – |
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Oct 1–28, 2020 | 910 (LV) | – | 32% | 67% | - | – | – |
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Sep 1–30, 2020 | 351 (LV) | – | 37% | 62% | - | – | 0% |
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Aug 1–31, 2020 | 208 (LV) | – | 41% | 57% | - | – | 3% |
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Jul 1–31, 2020 | 253 (LV) | – | 39% | 60% | - | – | 1% |
| SurveyMonkey/Axios | Jun 8–30, 2020 | 176 (LV) | – | 40% | 60% | - | – | 1% |

### Results

2020 United States presidential election in Rhode Island :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Democratic | Joe Biden Kamala Harris | 307,486 | 59.39% | +4.98% |
| | Republican | Donald Trump Mike Pence | 199,922 | 38.61% | −0.29% |
| | Libertarian | Jo Jorgensen Spike Cohen | 5,053 | 0.98% | −2.20% |
| | Alliance | Rocky De La Fuente Darcy Richardson | 923 | 0.18% | +0.04% |
| | Socialism and Liberation | Gloria La Riva Sunil Freeman | 847 | 0.16% | N/A |
| | American Solidarity | Brian Carroll Amar Patel | 767 | 0.15% | N/A |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 2,759 | 0.53% | -1.50% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 517,757 | 100.00% | N/A |

#### By county

| County | Joe Biden Democratic | Joe Biden Democratic | Donald Trump Republican | Donald Trump Republican | Various candidates Other parties | Various candidates Other parties | Margin | Margin | Total votes cast |
| County | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | Total votes cast |
| Bristol | 18,050 | 63.52% | 9,745 | 34.30% | 620 | 2.18% | 8,305 | 29.22% | 28,415 |
| Kent | 49,113 | 52.76% | 42,001 | 45.12% | 1,979 | 2.12% | 7,112 | 7.64% | 93,093 |
| Newport | 29,486 | 63.89% | 15,722 | 34.07% | 940 | 2.04% | 13,764 | 29.82% | 46,148 |
| Providence | 165,012 | 60.52% | 102,551 | 37.61% | 5,104 | 1.87% | 62,461 | 22.91% | 272,667 |
| Washington | 44,549 | 58.57% | 29,818 | 39.20% | 1,693 | 2.23% | 14,731 | 19.37% | 76,060 |
| Totals | 306,210 | 59.39% | 199,922 | 38.61% | 10,349 | 2.00% | 107,564 | 20.78% | 517,757 |
* Democratic — +10-12.5%
* Democratic — +7.5-10%
* Democratic — +5-7.5%
* Democratic — +2.5-5%
* Democratic — +0-2.5%
* Republican — +2.5-5%
* Democratic — +10-12.5%
* Democratic — +7.5-10%
* Democratic — +5-7.5%
* Democratic — +2.5-5%
* Democratic — +0-2.5%
* Republican — +2.5-5%
* Democratic  Hold  Gain from Republican Republican  Hold
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
* Kent (largest municipality: Warwick)

#### By municipality

| Municipality | Joe Biden Democratic | Joe Biden Democratic | Donald Trump Republican | Donald Trump Republican | Jo Jorgensen Libertarian | Jo Jorgensen Libertarian | Other | Other | Margin | Margin | Total votes cast |
| Municipality | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | Total votes cast |
| Barrington | 7,713 | 71.2% | 2,889 | 26.7% | 113 | 1.0% | 117 | 1.0% | 4,824 | 44.5% | 10,832 |
| Bristol | 6,813 | 58.4% | 4,595 | 39.4% | 139 | 1.2% | 110 | 0.9% | 2,218 | 19.0% | 11,657 |
| Burrillville | 3,434 | 40.2% | 4,906 | 57.5% | 126 | 1.5% | 72 | 0.9% | -1,472 | -17.3% | 8,538 |
| Central Falls | 3,073 | 71.9% | 1,113 | 26.1% | 25 | 0.6% | 61 | 1.4% | 1,960 | 45.8% | 4,272 |
| Charlestown | 2,909 | 55.7% | 2,198 | 42.1% | 64 | 1.2% | 49 | 1.0% | 711 | 13.6% | 5,220 |
| Coventry | 9,123 | 45.6% | 10,461 | 52.3% | 232 | 1.2% | 188 | 0.9% | -1,338 | -6.7% | 20,004 |
| Cranston | 23,039 | 56.1% | 17,313 | 42.2% | 311 | 0.8% | 390 | 1.0% | 5,726 | 13.9% | 41,053 |
| Cumberland | 10,869 | 55.2% | 8,418 | 42.8% | 206 | 1.0% | 185 | 0.9% | 2,451 | 12.4% | 19,678 |
| East Greenwich | 5,218 | 60.3% | 3,227 | 37.3% | 104 | 1.2% | 98 | 1.1% | 1,991 | 23.0% | 8,647 |
| East Providence | 14,735 | 63.6% | 7,930 | 34.3% | 204 | 0.9% | 284 | 1.3% | 6,805 | 29.3% | 23,153 |
| Exeter | 1,974 | 48.4% | 2,009 | 49.2% | 55 | 1.3% | 44 | 1.1% | -35 | -0.8% | 4,082 |
| Foster | 1,224 | 42.7% | 1,582 | 55.2% | 34 | 1.2% | 25 | 0.8% | -358 | -12.5% | 2,865 |
| Glocester | 2,638 | 43.2% | 3,351 | 54.8% | 62 | 1.0% | 62 | 1.0% | -713 | -11.6% | 6,113 |
| Hopkinton | 2,298 | 47.4% | 2,423 | 50.0% | 74 | 1.5% | 51 | 1.0% | -125 | -2.6% | 4,846 |
| Jamestown | 2,795 | 68.4% | 1,212 | 29.7% | 44 | 1.1% | 33 | 0.8% | 1,583 | 38.7% | 4,084 |
| Johnston | 6,838 | 44.8% | 8,222 | 53.9% | 88 | 0.6% | 115 | 0.8% | -1,384 | -9.1% | 15,263 |
| Lincoln | 6,633 | 52.3% | 5,779 | 45.6% | 130 | 1.0% | 129 | 1.0% | 854 | 6.7% | 12,671 |
| Little Compton | 1,524 | 60.1% | 951 | 37.5% | 28 | 1.1% | 32 | 1.2% | 573 | 22.6% | 2,535 |
| Middletown | 5,529 | 64.2% | 2,885 | 33.5% | 115 | 1.3% | 79 | 0.9% | 2,644 | 30.7% | 8,608 |
| Narragansett | 5,333 | 59.1% | 3,551 | 39.3% | 56 | 0.6% | 90 | 1.1% | 1,782 | 19.8% | 9,030 |
| New Shoreham | 748 | 78.3% | 195 | 20.4% | 4 | 0.4% | 8 | 0.8% | 553 | 57.9% | 955 |
| Newport | 7,866 | 73.4% | 2,662 | 24.9% | 85 | 0.8% | 99 | 0.9% | 5,204 | 48.5% | 10,712 |
| North Kingstown | 10,534 | 59.9% | 6,633 | 37.7% | 203 | 1.2% | 207 | 1.2% | 3,901 | 22.2% | 17,577 |
| North Providence | 9,438 | 56.0% | 7,129 | 42.3% | 145 | 0.9% | 139 | 0.8% | 2,309 | 13.7% | 16,851 |
| North Smithfield | 3,507 | 48.7% | 3,550 | 49.3% | 85 | 1.2% | 64 | 0.9% | -43 | -0.6% | 7,206 |
| Pawtucket | 18,053 | 70.0% | 7,257 | 28.1% | 188 | 0.7% | 290 | 1.2% | 10,796 | 41.9% | 25,788 |
| Portsmouth | 6,649 | 60.9% | 3,995 | 36.6% | 148 | 1.4% | 125 | 1.1% | 2,654 | 24.3% | 10,917 |
| Providence | 45,941 | 80.4% | 10,186 | 17.8% | 346 | 0.6% | 694 | 1.2% | 35,755 | 62.6% | 57,167 |
| Richmond | 2,346 | 48.8% | 2,343 | 48.7% | 66 | 1.4% | 53 | 1.1% | 3 | 0.1% | 4,808 |
| Scituate | 2,735 | 40.9% | 3,806 | 57.0% | 69 | 1.0% | 73 | 1.1% | -1,071 | -16.1% | 6,683 |
| Smithfield | 5,566 | 48.3% | 5,744 | 49.8% | 118 | 1.0% | 100 | 0.9% | -178 | -1.5% | 11,528 |
| South Kingstown | 11,254 | 67.4% | 5,003 | 30.0% | 212 | 1.3% | 219 | 1.3% | 6,251 | 37.4% | 16,688 |
| Tiverton | 5,123 | 55.1% | 4,017 | 43.2% | 84 | 0.9% | 68 | 0.7% | 1,106 | 11.9% | 9,292 |
| Warren | 3,524 | 59.5% | 2,261 | 38.2% | 74 | 1.2% | 67 | 1.1% | 1,263 | 21.3% | 5,926 |
| Warwick | 25,845 | 55.7% | 19,578 | 42.2% | 545 | 1.2% | 473 | 1.0% | 6,267 | 13.5% | 46,441 |
| West Greenwich | 1,693 | 42.3% | 2,242 | 56.0% | 41 | 1.0% | 24 | 0.6% | -549 | -13.7% | 4,000 |
| West Warwick | 7,234 | 51.7% | 6,493 | 46.4% | 143 | 1.0% | 131 | 0.9% | 741 | 5.3% | 14,001 |
| Westerly | 7,153 | 55.6% | 5,463 | 42.5% | 127 | 1.0% | 111 | 0.8% | 1,690 | 13.1% | 12,854 |
| Woonsocket | 7,289 | 52.7% | 6,265 | 45.3% | 154 | 1.1% | 130 | 0.9% | 1,024 | 7.4% | 13,838 |
| Totals | 307,486 | 59.4% | 199,922 | 38.6% | 5,053 | 1.0% | 5,296 | 1.0% | 107,564 | 20.8% | 517,757 |

#### By congressional district

Biden won both congressional districts.
| District | Trump | Biden | Representative |
| 1st | 34% | 64% | David Cicilline |
| 2nd | 42% | 56% | James Langevin |

## Analysis

Biden flipped the reliably Democratic Kent County back into the Democratic column, after Trump narrowly flipped it in 2016. Of the fourteen towns that voted for Trump in 2016, Biden flipped back three: Lincoln, Richmond, and West Warwick. Overall, Biden won Rhode Island by 20.8 points, improving on Clinton's 15.5 point win. Rhode Island is the only state in which neither Biden nor Trump broke the all-time Democrat or all-time Republican record for most votes earned in a general election (Lyndon B. Johnson and Dwight D. Eisenhower).
Biden's best towns were Rhode Island's wealthiest (such as Barrington, Jamestown, and East Greenwich) and poorest (such as heavily Latino Central Falls). Trump performed best with middle-income voters. This strength allowed Trump to hold formerly Democratic towns like Johnston, which is largely Catholic and middle-class. According to a post-election voter survey conducted by the Associated Press, Trump carried Catholic voters, 51% to 49%.
Biden became the first Democrat since 1912 to win without the towns of Burrillville and North Smithfield, the first since 1916 to win without Johnston and Smithfield, and the first since 1936 to win without Coventry. Biden flipped the municipalities of Lincoln, Richmond, and West Warwick.