'This is not a drill': GOP scrambling for signatures for 2024 candidates in Rhode Island

A small stack of clipboards spread across a corner table, flanked by an inches-high American flag, were the only indication of political activity inside Brewed Awakenings in Johnston on Wednesday.

Members of the Johnston Republican Town Committee sat scattered across the coffee shop, chatting and apparently unbothered by the task at hand: collecting nomination signatures for Republican presidential candidates ahead of the looming deadline 24 hours away..

Their demeanor stood in stark contrast to the urgent tone of the Rhode Island Republican Party’s email the previous day, at which time none of the six Republican presidential hopefuls had enough signatures to qualify for the state’s April 2 primary.

“This is not a drill,” Joe Powers, GOP chairman, wrote in the subject line of the Jan. 9 email. His message was punctuated with bolded font, underlined phrases and capitalization aimed at conveying the dire need for more signatures.

Presidential candidates have until 4 p.m. on Jan. 11 to turn in at least 1,000 signatures of registered voters to their local boards of canvassers to secure a spot on the state’s presidential primary ballot.

President Joe Biden, along with U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, had already crossed the 1,000-signature threshold as of midday Wednesday, although the results must still be double-checked by the Rhode Island Secretary of State. Republican candidate and former president Donald Trump hit the target a few hours later, but the other five Republican candidates still lagged behind as of 4 p.m.

Nick Acquaviva, Johnston Republican Town Committee member, didn’t seem worried.

But, he added, “This is not really a normal election.”

Acquaviva, a lifelong Johnston resident, blamed Biden for “trying to rig the election again.” How Biden was hampering local collection efforts, he wasn’t sure. More than half of Johnston voters backed Trump in 2020, including Acquaviva.

This time, though, he encountered voters who were reluctant to sign any candidates’ nomination papers, regardless of their political inclination.

“Some people are afraid to put their names down on anything,” agreed Sandra Taylor, chair of the Johnston Republican Town Committee. “They don’t want it to come up with their job, or anything.”

Hesitation might also have grown in the wake of alleged signature fraud which rocked Rhode Island’s congressional special election over the summer. Signature sheets for candidates have always been public information, but typically don’t garner the scrutiny of news outlets, or the Rhode Island Attorney General’s office, which is still investigating Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos’ papers for fraud.

While registered voters of any political party can sign a candidate’s nomination papers – including for multiple candidates – Taylor thought the attention given to Matos’ signatures has turned potential signatories away this time around. Not that it was stopping her, and other Republicans, from trying anyway.

“Voters deserve a choice,” she said. “We’re going to keep walking, keep knocking on doors and getting the word out.”

The final push

Back at the Rhode Island GOP headquarters in Warwick, meanwhile, Powers’ call to action appeared to be working. The four phone lines were ringing nonstop, while voters streamed in to sign nomination papers.

“There is less water pouring out of the Blackstone and Pawtucket River than what’s happening right here,” Powers said in an interview Wednesday afternoon. “It’s been packed.”

He hadn’t stopped to count the new John Hancocks collected, but expressed confidence that the 11th-hour push would bring the signatures needed. He wasn’t slowing down, preferring to play it safe rather than sorry, especially since some signatures had already been rejected by local boards of canvassers.

It’s not uncommon for some signatures to get tossed out, often because the handwriting can’t be matched against state records or the signer isn’t actually a registered voter. Powers in his email accused election administrators of rejecting signatures “without a clear reason,” but declined to elaborate on Wednesday.

“At this point, I am not concerned with the how or why,” he said. “Our focus is on getting enough signatures.”

Asked for comment about Powers’ accusations, Faith Chybowski, a spokesperson for the Secretary of State’s office, reiterated the process through which local boards of canvassers review and categorize each signature, offering a reason when applicable for why a signature might be rejected. There is also an opportunity to challenge the final count, including signatures that were tossed out, before the state Board of Elections certifies primary ballots.

In addition to Trump, five other Republicans filed paperwork indicating their intent to run in Rhode Island’s presidential preference primary: former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, and Texas businessman and pastor Ryan Binkley. The state GOP has helped gather signatures for Trump, Christie, DeSantis and Haley, because those campaigns responded when asked if they wanted help with local signature collection, Powers said.

Other Democratic candidates vying for a spot on the presidential ballot include Michael Vandal, and online news personality Cenk Uygur, though Uygur’s paperwork remained under review by the Secretary of State as of Wednesday. Other states, including New Hampshire, have rejected Turkish-born Uygur’s attempt to appear on their presidential primary ballots because the U.S. Constitution stipulates presidential candidates must be “natural born” citizens.

Most Johnston Republicans at Brewed Awakenings were still undecided on who they will vote for, though that didn’t stop them from signing multiple candidates’ nomination papers.

The point is to have choices, especially as the state’s Republican presence grows, said Nicola Grasso, a Johnston Republican who ran unsuccessfully against Democratic State Rep. Deb Fellela in 2020.

“I think this is the strongest our party has been in a long time,” Grasso said. “I see a shift in the political makeup, even of my friends, who were old-school Democrats, becoming fed-up with the way things are being run. This is an opportunity for us.”

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