Is House Majority Leader DeSimone One of the Most Vulnerable in RI?

Is House Majority Leader DeSimone One of the Most Vulnerable in RI?

Rhode Island House Majority Leader John DeSimone, who admitted this year to failing to pay his property taxes on time and owing the city more than $18,000, is facing a primary challenge from Marcia Ranglin-Vassell. 

Is he in for a fight?

First elected to District 5 in 1992, DeSimone was tapped as Majority Leader in 2014 — and ranked by GoLocal as the 8th most powerful at the State House at the beginning of last year, and was just listed sixth among all legislators for campaign war chests, having $111,527.93 cash on hand as of June 29. 

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

“The one thing I will say about the John DeSimone tax issue is that I firmly believe that if lawmakers are writing laws, they must be accountable and abide by those same laws,” said opponent Ranglin-Vassell, who has been endorsed by the Rhode Island Progressive Democrats.

“I think this is a huge issue,” Sam Bell, State Coordinator for the RI Progressive Democrats, told GoLocalProv.com on Tuesday. "To be honest, I'm sick and tired of powerful politicians feeling like they don't have to play by the same rules as everyone else."

DeSimone did not respond to request for comment on Tuesday. 

Political Climate

DeSImone’s tax issues were part of GoLocal’s recent look, “Does Providence Have an Ethics Problem?”

“The taxpayers of Providence, and Rhode Island more generally are sick and tired of finding out that their elected officials are either not paying taxes, do not live where they say they live, or outright steal tax dollars for themselves.  The Speaker needs to show strong leadership here and try to root out this kind of corruption before voters lose faith entirely,” said Brown University Professor of Political Science Wendy Schiller. “And in this election season, it seems anything can happen.”

GoLocal reached to out to Speaker of the House Nicholas Mattiello’s spokesperson Patti Doyle, who responded with the following on Tuesday.

“What I can say is that the Speaker has long supported Leader DeSimone and I have every expectation that he will continue to do so,” said Doyle. 

Roger Williams University Professor of Political Science June Speakman, who ran for a delegate spot for Hillary Clinton in Rhode Island in 2016, offered her perspective on DeSimone’s tax issue this election season. 

“As is so often pointed out, Rhode Islanders have become accustomed to frequent stories of elected officials behaving badly.  And in many cases, voters forgive these indiscretions and return these politicians to office,” said Speakman. “And in the grand scheme of things, Rep. DeSimone’s indiscretion -- late payments of taxes -- is small potatoes when compared to the bribe-taking and influence-peddling of other political figures in recent years.”

“The anti-establishment mood of the electorate—as evidenced by the Trump and Sanders' primary victories—provides the context for all other races, which is a gift to DeSimone’s opponent, should she choose to frame her challenge this way,” said Speakman. “On the other hand, we know that Rhode Island politics is hyperlocal, which means that DeSimone’s particular relationship with his constituents, will determine the outcome of the primary.”

Campaign Issues

On Tuesday, DeSimone’s opponent Ranglin-Vassell spoke to the issues she feels most strongly about. 

“[One is] dismantling the school to prison pipeline . We can do that through restorative justice which keeps kids in school as opposed to giving them out of school suspension. As a teacher myself, ensuring that working families have a living wage of is not too much to ask for. People should not work 35, 40 or in some cases 60 per week and still live in poverty,” said Ranglin-Vassell. 

The Progressive Democrats’ Bell took aim at a number of DeSimone’s positions, including the minimum wage issue. 

“John DeSimone, who voted to ban Providence from raising the minimum wage, doesn't care about working people,” said Bell. “He doesn't represent a rich Republican district, but he votes like he does.  He has voted for massive payments to politically connected corporations.  When he chaired the committee tasked with looking into public corruption, he refused to hold any hearings for two whole years.  Defeating John DeSimone will send a powerful signal that Rhode Islanders want change."

“DeSimone has sold out his community in other ways.  Even though his district is plagued by gun violence, he's taken money from the gun lobby, and he voted to gut gun laws right after Orlando,” added Bell. 

RWU's Speakman offered her thoughts on September's primary.

"DeSimone has won his last three contests either by default (no opponent) or by huge margins (above 75%).  Political science tells us that this gives him a significant advantage," said Speakman. "However, this time around, he appears to have a motivated opponent.  And the Progressive Democrats are well organized and also highly motivated this cycle.  If Ranglin-Vassell can count on their help, she may be able to cut into those large margins. But again, the dynamics of the particular district are what determines victory in these races."

Republican challenger Roland Joseph Lavallee is slated to face the winner of the Democratic primary in District 5 in the general election on November 8.