The 2002 Rhode Island gubernatorial election took place on November 5, 2002. Incumbent
Republican governor
Lincoln Almond
Lincoln Carter Almond (June 16, 1936 – January 2, 2023) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 72nd Governor of Rhode Island from 1995 to 2003. A member of the Republican Party, he was previously the United States Attorney ...
was term-limited. Republican
Donald Carcieri
Donald Louis Carcieri ( ; ; born December 16, 1942) is an American politician and corporate executive who served as the 73rd Governor of Rhode Island from January 2003 to January 2011. Carcieri has worked as a manufacturing company executive, a ...
won the open seat, defeating
Democrat Myrth York.
In the Republican primary election, Carcieri defeated James Bennett, who had won the endorsement of the state Republican Party.
The 2002 campaign was particularly costly to York as she spent $3.8 million of her own money to finance what was to be her last bid for elected office. A key turning point in the campaign was when York criticized Carcieri for the actions of businesses he had been associated with but refused to answer Carcieri's request that she reveal what companies her personal assets were invested in.
Republican primary
A Republican primary was held on September 10.
Candidates
*
Donald Carcieri
Donald Louis Carcieri ( ; ; born December 16, 1942) is an American politician and corporate executive who served as the 73rd Governor of Rhode Island from January 2003 to January 2011. Carcieri has worked as a manufacturing company executive, a ...
, businessman
*Jim Bennett
Results
Results by county
Results by municipality
Source:
Democratic primary
A Democratic primary was held on September 10.
Candidates
*Antonio J. Pires, former
Rhode Island state representative.
*
Sheldon Whitehouse
Sheldon Whitehouse (born October 20, 1955) is an American lawyer and politician serving since 2007 as the junior United States senator from Rhode Island. A member of the Democratic Party, he served from 1993 to 1998 as the United States Att ...
,
Attorney General of Rhode Island
The attorney general of Rhode Island is the chief legal advisor of the government of the State of Rhode Island and oversees the State of Rhode Island Department of Law. The attorney general is directly elected every four years. The current atto ...
, former
U.S. attorney
United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...
for the
District of Rhode Island
*
Myrth York, former
Rhode Island senator,
1994
The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations.
In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...
and
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
Democratic nominee for governor
Polling
Results
Results by county
Results by municipality
Source:
General election
Predictions
Polling
Results
Notes
References
See also
{{United States elections, 2002
2002
The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
Rhode Island
Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...
Gubernatorial
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...
November 2002 in the United States