“Representative Serpa and Speaker Mattiello participated in 844 floor votes together in 2017, and she voted the same as Mattiello 844 times,” says Delmenico, citing the need for representation that stands up to the Speaker of the House.

Nicholas Delmenico announced his candidacy today for State Representative in RI House District 27 – West Warwick/Coventry/Warwick, calling his candidacy a referendum on the state of leadership in Rhode Island’s House of Representatives.

“We have a House and an entire state government that are unfairly held under the control of one man: House Speaker Nick Mattiello,” said Delmenico. “Under Mattiello, committee chairs are fired from their posts when they prioritize the will of their constituents over his agenda. Meanwhile, those who speak up for transparency and democracy are evicted from their State House offices. It is time for the rank and file members of the House to take back their power and elect a new speaker.

“I was born here, I grew up here, and I chose to stay here,” continued Delmenico, a West Warwick Democrat. “I am tired of standing on the sidelines while our community’s voice at the State House is silenced by a politician from Cranston. Unfortunately, our own representative is not only complicit, but actively supports this corrupt agenda and silences her constituents in the process.”

Delmenico cited voting data collected from the 2017 House Journals that demonstrate Representative Patricia Serpa voted alongside Speaker Mattiello in 100 percent of the votes taken together during that session. “Representative Serpa and Speaker Mattiello participated in 844 floor votes together in 2017, and she voted the same as Mattiello 844 times,” Delmenico stated.

“Our community needs a representative that is transparent and forward thinking, that cares for their neighborhoods and their constituents, and that welcomes ethics reform and opposing views rather than seeing them as an attack. District 27 deserves better than this. We need someone who works to represent us. I promise to be that person and I promise to never forget that I work for you.”

Saying he is putting his money where his mouth is, Delmenico has pledged to not accept campaign contributions from corporate PACs, corporate lobbyists, and the fossil fuel industries. His campaign will be people-powered and his tenure as representative will follow suit, prioritizing the needs of Rhode Islanders over the bottom line of corporations.

Delmenico challenged Rep. Serpa in the 2016 Democratic primary and earned 45 percent of the vote as a political newcomer. A Leadership Rhode Island alumnus and one of the Providence Business News 40 Under Forty in 2014, he graduated from Coventry High School and lives in the Crompton area of West Warwick.

[From a press release]