Patricia L. Morgan
(born August 25, 1950) is an American politician and
Republican member of the
Rhode Island House of Representatives representing district 26 since 2021. She formerly represented district 26 from 2011 until 2019, where she chose not to run again. She became the first female minority leader of the Rhode Island House of Representatives in 2017, after she was chosen by the Republican caucus members on November 15, 2016 when former minority leader
Brian Newberry
Brian C. Newberry (born December 10, 1971) is an American politician and a Republican member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives representing District 48 since January 2009.
Education
Newberry graduated from the University of Pennsylva ...
stepped down from the position.
Morgan ran for
Governor of Rhode Island
The governor of Rhode Island is the head of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, o ...
in the
2018 election. She lost the primary to Cranston Mayor and 2014 Republican candidate
Allan Fung
Allan Wai-Ket Fung (born February 25, 1970) is an American attorney and politician who served as Mayor of Cranston, Rhode Island from 2009 to 2021. He was the Republican nominee for Governor of Rhode Island in the 2014 and 2018 elections as we ...
.
On October 4, Rhode Island House Republicans voted to remove Morgan from her position as House Minority Leader following her endorsement of independent candidate
Joe Trillo, a former House colleague, for Governor over Fung.
Education
Morgan attended
Mississippi State University
Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Unive ...
, earned her
BA degree from
Kent State University
Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...
, her
MEd from
Rhode Island College
Rhode Island College (RIC) is a public college in Providence, Rhode Island. The college was established in 1854 as the Rhode Island State Normal School, making it the second oldest institution of higher education in Rhode Island after Brown Uni ...
, and principal's certificate from
Providence College
Providence College is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic university in Providence, Rhode Island. Founded in 1917 by the Dominican Order and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, local diocese, it offers 47 undergradua ...
.
Controversies
Morgan complained on 28 December 2021 via Twitter that a friendship she had with an African American friend had become "hostile and unpleasant." Morgan largely attributed this hostility to efforts by teachers and the political left's support for
critical race theory
Critical race theory (CRT) is a cross-disciplinary examination, by social and civil-rights scholars and activists, of how laws, social and political movements, and media shape, and are shaped by, social conceptions of race and ethnicity. Goa ...
. Her tweet has been condemned by both Democrats and the GOP, and the BLM RI PAC, the political arm of the Black Lives Matter movement in Rhode Island, has called for her removal from committee assignments in the RI General Assembly.
Elections
*2004 To challenge District 26 incumbent Representative Murphy, Morgan was unopposed for the 2004 Republican Primary, but lost to the November 2, 2004 General election to Representative Murphy.
*2010 When Democratic Representative
William Murphy retired and left the seat open, Morgan was unopposed for the September 23, 2010 Republican Primary, winning with 220 votes and won the November 2, 2010 General election by 90 votes with 2,239 votes (51%) against Democratic nominee Michael Senerchia.
*2012 Morgan was unopposed for the September 11, 2012 Republican Primary, winning with 129 votes and won the November 6, 2012 General election with 2,849 votes (52.1%) against
Democratic nominee Nicholas Denice.
*2014 Morgan was unopposed for the September 9, 2014 Republican Primary, winning with 376 votes and won the November 4, 2014 General election with 2,104 votes (50.1%) against
Democratic nominee Nicholas Denice who had 1,816 votes (43.2%) and
Moderate Paul Caianiello, Jr. who had 275 votes (6.6%).
*2016 Morgan was unopposed for the September 13, 2016 Republican Primary and won the November 8, 2016 General election with 3,192 votes (55.2%) against
Democratic nominee Anthony J. Paolino who had 2,079 votes (35.9%) and
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
Vincent Marzullo who had 504 votes (8.7%).
References
External links
Official pageat the
Rhode Island General Assembly
*
Patricia Morganat
Ballotpedia
Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...
Patricia L. Morganat the National Institute on Money in State Politics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Patricia
1950 births
21st-century American politicians
21st-century American women politicians
Kent State University alumni
Living people
Republican Party members of the Rhode Island House of Representatives
Mississippi State University alumni
People from West Warwick, Rhode Island
Place of birth missing (living people)
Providence College alumni
Rhode Island College alumni
University of Rhode Island alumni
Women state legislators in Rhode Island