RI Election 2023 Candidate Profile: Jacob Bissaillon For State Senate

PROVIDENCE, RI — Off-year elections in 2023 are fast approaching in Rhode Island.

On Nov. 7, a special election will decide who takes the seat vacated state Senate Majority Whip Maryellen Goodwin (D-Providence), who died earlier this year following a battle with cancer. The race will see Democratic General Assembly staffer Jake Bissaillon square off against Republican Niyoka Powell, a frontline health care worker seeking office.

To help inform voters prior to the special election, Patch is publishing candidate profiles. This one focuses on Bissaillon.

1. The single most pressing issue facing the district is _______, and this is what do you intend to do about it?

Housing is the single most pressing issue facing Providence and the State of Rhode Island, and I have a front row seat to it campaigning here in District 1. From the Charles Street encampments to the lack of access to traditional working class homeownership opportunities in Wanskuck, Senate District One is a perfect window in to the state’s housing crisis.

I believe in a multifaceted approach to addressing this crisis, which is grounded in the reality that more than 20 new laws have been passed over the last two years to spur development. Taking that into account, I think now we need to expeditiously incentivize the development of affordable housing, workforce housing, and low-barrier entry housing. It’s not enough to make it easier to build on vacant lots or create new sub-developments in the suburbs – we need more housing units, and we need them now. Lastly, I think we need to create more pathways to homeownership so that it is easier for individuals to break the cycle of rent and begin to build wealth. The state has had tremendous success with down payment assistance programs, and I believe we should continue to build out that model, so it makes financial sense for young folks to choose to own a home and raise a family here in Rhode Island.

2. What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

My opponent and I have significantly different positions as to how to address three of the biggest challenges facing Providence: public safety, public education, and climate change. I believe we should ban assault weapons and other military style weapons of war, while my opponent does not. I believe that we should increase our investment in public schools, while my opponent believes we should divert taxpayers’ dollars away from public schools towards private schools. I believe that Rhode Island can build on the Act on Climate and pass other laws to combat climate change and to protect our environment, while my opponent has said that she does not believe in climate change. I believe these challenges – curbing gun violence, fixing our public schools, and combatting climate change – are the critical issues of our time, and my opponent simply does not share that belief.

3. Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

I would like to see our state continue down the path of criminal justice reform. One of the first initiatives I worked on when I began my career as an attorney was passing Justice Reinvestment. Justice Reinvestment was a compressive package of sentencing, parole, and probation reforms designed to: reduce recidivism, ensure justice-involved individuals receive the treatment they need, and save taxpayers dollars. I believe we need to build a more compassionate society and that begins by assisting, rather than criminalizing, non-violent individuals who are beholden to mental health disorders, substance abuse disorders, or a combination thereof.

4. What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

For more than a decade, I have fought to enact forward-thinking policies. As chief of staff to the Providence City Council, I worked within our city’s neighborhoods on fundamental quality of life issues and put front and center the plight of the overworked and underpaid workers in our city’s hospitality and hotel industries. As legal counsel to the Senate Majority Leader, I helped draft laws to take guns away from domestic abusers and those afflicted by mental health disorders. As chief of staff to the Senate President, I have worked to get critical laws across the finish line: the Act on Climate, which aims to bring Rhode Island to net-zero emissions by 2050; the Let RI Vote Act, which expands voter access by creating a permanent early voting process and making it easier to vote by mail; and banning high-capacity magazines to prevent senseless violence. These laws will not only improve our community for generations to come, but they will also save lives.

5. What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I came to Providence to attend Providence College (PC). Both my parents taught public school in Massachusetts, so service to one’s community was instilled in me from a young age. At PC, I balanced campaign volunteer work with delivering pizzas with going to classes. Providence College really fueled my passion for politics and public service. It was there that I rallied other students and city residents behind President Barack Obama’s first presidential campaign. As a student organizer tasked with recruiting volunteers to knock on doors in New Hampshire and make phone calls to Iowa, I learned how building a team to work toward a common goal can contribute to major victories. After graduating from PC with my MBA, I went to work as Chief of Staff to the Providence City Council. Since then, I have worked for both the House of Representatives and State Senate in leadership roles and presently oversee a staff of more than 50 employees.

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