
By Alexander Castro | Reporter
Hey, happy Wednesday.
High tide in Bristol is at 1:37 p.m. Low tide is at 7:04 p.m. The sun sets at 7:58 p.m.
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At 7 p.m., candidates for Rhode Island attorney general will participate in a forum hosted by the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island. The event, “Building Safer Communities: A Conversation with Attorney General Candidates” starts at 7 p.m. at the Baxt Social Hall of the Bonnie & Donald Dwares Jewish Community Center at 401 Elmgrove Avenue in Providence.

Gena Felix (left) is a registered nurse challenging Sen. Lori Urso (right) in the Democratic primary for Pawtucket's Senate District 8. Urso was first elected in 2024. (Courtesy photos)
By Nancy Lavin
Sen. Lori Urso, a first-term incumbent, has recognition beyond Smith Hill thanks to her appearance in an episode of the “Real Housewives of Rhode Island,” where she and Rep. Karen Alzate discussed their first-in-the-nation legislation offering workplace protections for menopause. Gena Felix, her challenger, has never run for or held elected office — but her identical twin sister, Leonela Felix, has served in the House representing Pawtucket’s District 61 since 2020.

A Providence federal judge has ordered Johnston officials to explain why they should not be held in contempt after landowners accused the town of violating an injunction blocking its effort to condemn a 31-acre property. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)
By Christopher Shea
One week after a Rhode Island federal judge ruled Johnston’s attempted seizure of a 31-acre property for a proposed apartment complex was unlawful, its owners are asking the court to hold town officials in contempt as they still try to take the land

After meeting behind closed doors for about an hour Tuesday, the Rhode Island Ethics Commission voted 4-1 to authorize its executive director and attorneys to seek a declaratory judgment from the Rhode Island Supreme Court on whether former House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi's appointment to the judiciary would violate the state's ethics laws. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)
By Christopher Shea
The Rhode Island Ethics Commission will appeal a recent Superior Court ruling that cleared the way for former House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi to seek a vacancy on the state’s Supreme Court.

A group of mostly Democratic-led states is challenging a Trump administration rule that would force them to provide data on people receiving antipoverty benefits. (Photo by Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)
By Lilo H. Stainton and William J. Ford | New Jersey Monitor and Maryland Matters
The Trump administration’s demand for states to provide Social Security numbers, immigration status, and other private information on low-income residents who receive cash benefits is improper and unconstitutional, a group of mostly Democratic-led states, including Rhode Island, alleges in a new lawsuit.

A close-up view of the wings and abdomen of a Culex quinquefasciatus , or southern house mosquito. (Photo by Lauren Bishop/U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
By Alexander Castro
Five mosquito pools collected in Providence County tested positive for West Nile virus last week, bringing Rhode Island’s total to seven positive samples this summer.
ICYMI
Blanche nomination for attorney general advanced by US Senate panel on party-line vote | Ashley Murray, D.C. Bureau
A former Providence mayor endorses Morales to take down the incumbent | Christopher Shea
Democratic challengers Foulkes and Khamsyvoravong widen cash leads over incumbents in Q2 | Rhode Island Current staff
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