Rhode Island Secretary of State Matthew Brown announced his decision to challenge the 2006 re-election bid of Sen. Lincoln Chafee '75, R-R.I., issuing a press release Thursday, Feb. 3, that highlighted early fundraising efforts and named over 500 campaign supporters.
Brown told The Herald he is disappointed with Rhode Island's current representation in Washington.
"They just don't get what's going on in people's lives in Rhode Island," he said, referring to the state's current national officeholders. "What have they done to solve the problems people are facing every day?"
If he were to replace Chafee, Brown said he would advocate affordable health care, seek improvements in the school system and expand financial aid for college students.
Brown, a Democrat, is currently Chafee's only challenger, though other candidates could emerge in the coming months and force a Democratic primary, according to Professor of Political Science Darrell West, director of the Taubman center for Public Policy.
Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I., is another potential challenger, West said. Langevin has said he will announce by April 1 whether he will try for Chafee's Senate seat or pursue re-election to the House of Representatives, according to the Providence Journal.
West said Brown's decision to announce his candidacy at this early stage in the election process reflects the significant amount of time and fundraising dollars necessary to launch a legitimate challenge against an incumbent.
"Although it seems like we just had a campaign, he actually did need to indicate his intentions," West said.
Republican State Sen. Kevin Breene said he believes additional contenders will enter the race.
"I think somebody has to win a Democratic primary before anyone can run against Chafee," Breene said. "You can't put the cart before the horse."
Brown was elected secretary of state in 2002, beating out Republican Christopher Stanley. Prior to his election, Brown co-founded Providence's City Year chapter, a non-profit organization he said encourages "young people of all different backgrounds" to spend a year undertaking local community service projects.
As executive director of City Year, Brown said he organized projects that addressed gang violence, fostered after-school enrichment programs and promoted the construction of low-income housing.
When asked about his most significant achievement in office, Brown cited a recently implemented program that allows Rhode Island residents to receive prescription drugs from licensed Canadian pharmacies. The program "provides safe prescription drugs that (Rhode Island seniors) can afford," he said. The move violates a federal ban on drug importation, though Brown told The Herald last week that he did not anticipate a response from federal officials, saying "it's very hard to argue" against a program that offers cheap prescription drugs.
"I find that (Brown) has been an excellent leader," said Ward 7 City Councilman John Igliozzi, who is one of over 500 supporters named to Brown's campaign committee. "He's shown that he has the energy to be the right person for the job," he said, citing Brown's efforts promoting healthcare improvements and voter rights.
Igliozzi said Chafee's inconsistency compromises his ability to effectively represent Rhode Island residents.
"You never know where he is on policy. He goes back and forth. He didn't even know who he was going to vote for," he said, referring to Chafee's Sept. 20, 2004, announcement that he would not vote for George W. Bush in the presidential election.
But Breene said he would support Chafee regardless of who emerges as the main Democratic contender.
"I just think that he's an independent person that votes his own mind," Breene said. "He doesn't get hung up on the party line in either direction."
Chafee recently became the target of an advertising campaign sponsored by the Club For Growth, a conservative political organization funding advertisements that urge Rhode Island's junior senator to support President Bush's proposed Social Security reforms.
"It's hard to say" whether these advertisements will have a direct impact on Chafee's campaign "because there isn't a big conservative base in this state," West said.
But the advertisements may foreshadow issues Chafee will need to address later in the campaign, West said.
"I think the primary issue will be the Bush agenda and how people feel about how Chafee has voted in regard to those issues," he said.
Chafee's reluctance to fully support some Republican policies may prompt conservative groups to "target this Senate race," West said.
"If so, they could put hundreds of thousands of dollars into the state," he said. "They've done this in a number of other places."
Brown said his own campaign would focus on "the day-to-day problems that people are facing in Rhode Island and the kind of leadership I'm going to bring to solve them."
