Rhode Island voters approved three of five state bond questions on Nov. 3 and rejected two: the $100 million economic development bond and the $50 million cultural economy bond, according to unofficial results posted by the state.
Question 3, economic development, drew 162,633 votes to approve and 178,489 to reject, or 47.68% to 52.32%. Question 4, cultural economy, drew 170,080 to approve and 174,376 to reject, or 49.38% to 50.62%, a margin of 4,296 votes. The results page, last updated Friday, Nov. 6, at 3:46 p.m., showed all 39 cities and towns reporting and carried the label "unofficial results."
The three that passed were Question 1, higher education facilities ($275 million), at 59.99%; Question 2, housing and homeownership ($120 million), at 61.31%; and Question 5, green economy bonds ($55 million), at 67.08%. Together they carry $450 million in borrowing authority.
What the rejected questions would have paid for
The ballot language is in Article 5 of the 2026 capital development law. Question 3 split its $100 million into $55 million for site development and $45 million for growth industry infrastructure. The site money covered land acquisition, environmental remediation, utilities and site preparation, including large-scale industrial sites, improvements in the Quonset Business Park, and land and project investments in the I-195 District. The growth money was for ocean, defense, life sciences and data analytics industries, including water-based test ranges.
Question 4 would have provided $45 million to build a new Rhode Island State History Center and $5 million in matching grants, administered by the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission, for capital work at public historic sites, museums in historic buildings, and heritage museums.
What the approved questions fund
Question 1 allocates $165 million to a new Integrated Health Building at the University of Rhode Island's Kingston campus, $50 million to student success and career readiness space and renovations at the Rhode Island College Adams Library, and $60 million to a workforce innovation center on the Community College of Rhode Island's Warwick campus.
Question 2 requires at least $25 million for housing intended for homeownership and allows up to $10 million for public housing development. Question 5 includes $25 million for the Resilient Rhody Infrastructure Fund, $12 million for facility improvements, $7 million for Narragansett Bay watershed restoration, and smaller amounts for brownfields, recreation, marine infrastructure, farmland preservation and open space.
How the votes take effect
Each project is decided separately. Under Section 3 of Article 5, a project is approved if a majority of voters on the proposition vote to approve it, and bond authority is limited to the total of the approved projects. The sections that let the treasurer issue the bonds take effect when the State Board of Elections certifies approval to the Secretary of State.
