RI Leaders Report Card - Who is Getting the Job Done

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Kate Nagle, GoLocal Contributor

How well are Rhode Island's new Governor -- and Providence's new Mayor -- doing since taking office?   

Governor Gina Raimondo and Mayor Jorge Elorza have been at the helm now for six weeks, and political analysts are taking stock of the opening days of their administrations - half of which have been dealing with snow storms (and snow removal) since winter storm Juno hit on January 27.

"The big Rhode Island story has been the heavy snowfall. It has given the Governor an opportunity to dominate the news and show herself to be in charge," said Darrell West, Vice President and Director for Governance Studies at Brookings and former head of the Taubman Center at Brown University. "She has become the contemporary Joe Garrahy who used the weather to propel his popularity. This will help her down the road when she needs public support."

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Snow Focus

Veteran Rhode Island political pollster Victor Profughi, as well as Rhode Island College Professor of Communications Kay Israel, spoke to how Raimondo and Elorza have handled the recent storms as indicators of their performances so far. 

"With all of the snow, and the difference in scale between the city and the state, it’s difficult to say -- both seem to be off to a relatively good start, although, I think that probably because of the media play given to the Governor, Raimondo looked very good—both in her initial steps to build some bridges with opponents (especially the public unions) and in dealing with that initial blizzard a while back. I don’t think I detect any major missteps," said Profughi.  "Elorza seems to have been doing relatively well, too, but I think he is having a much more difficult job giving the appearance that he is actually in charge of the city."

Israel similarly agreed that the handling of the recent winter weather has been a major factor in the public's perceptions of the respective administrations.

"Thanks to the weather, the edge has to be given to the Governor.  Her presence on the media in the first heavy wave of blizzards had her front and center and gave the appearance of being in control.  For the most part her staff appointments seem to have a high level of professionalism," said Israel. 

"Meanwhile, the condition of the streets of Providence serves as a daily reminder of the limited powers of the Mayor," continued Israel.  "In both instance the need to establish a style of leadership has been as important as the actual substance of their efforts."

As of February 10, the state said that it expects to fully spend its snow removal budget of $14 million, and the city said it had spent two-thirds of its $1.6 million budget.  

Stumbling Blocks and Challenges

"For the Governor it’s been the slow nature of taking the reins of government," said Israel of the challenges facing Raimondo.  "Most of her coverage has focused on her staff appointments, the departure of Commissioner Gist, and the failure to resolve the pension controversy. While she has held a conference with a core group of Rhode Island opinion leaders to discuss how to stimulate the economy, it hasn’t led to any major proposal or gained much attention of most Rhode Islanders.  At this time it’s the legislature and its members’ proposals that are dominating most of the media’s attention."

"At this time neither the Governor nor the Mayor seems to be setting the agenda," said Israel.  "Instead, the doldrums of February and the snow have overridden the clear identification their leadership roles and their policies."

Profughi spoke to who could be emerging in the statewide ranks, but acknowledged the limitations of the political landscape at the current time.  

"Those who appear to be staking out a claim to an agenda [include] Lieutenant Governor Daniel J. McKee," said Profughi. "McKee clearly has aspirations of higher office and has staked out certain aspects of elementary and secondary education and municipal government...but he has yet to make much of a media splash, clearly in the shadow of the Governor.  At this point he has not articulated much of a clearly stated vision." 

"Secretary of State Nellie M. Gorbea," noted Profughi of who to watch in the coming year.  "The special election in Central Falls, along with voter ID have given her some visibility, but she too to date has not risen to leadership status and no specific agenda is apparent.  However, while election law is certainly not the most sexy topic to take off from, it could provide a platform for attention—wait and see."

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Related Slideshow: Providence City Council Grades Snow Removal Efforts

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