Elijah Gizzarelli
Elijah Gizzarelli (Libertarian Party) ran for election for Governor of Rhode Island. He lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.
Gizzarelli completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Elijah Gizzarelli was born in Providence, Rhode Island. He served in the U.S. Army from 2007 to 2012. His career experience includes working in construction.[1]
Elections
2022
See also: Rhode Island gubernatorial election, 2022
General election
General election for Governor of Rhode Island
Incumbent Daniel McKee defeated Ashley Kalus, Zachary Baker Hurwitz, Paul Rianna Jr., and Elijah Gizzarelli in the general election for Governor of Rhode Island on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Daniel McKee (D) | 57.9 | 207,166 | |
| Ashley Kalus (R) | 38.9 | 139,001 | ||
| Zachary Baker Hurwitz (Independent) | 1.3 | 4,512 | ||
| Paul Rianna Jr. (Independent) | 0.9 | 3,123 | ||
| Elijah Gizzarelli (L) | 0.8 | 2,811 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 1,057 | ||
| Total votes: 357,670 | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- James Aubin (L)
- Christopher Reynolds (Independent)
- Richard Spinney (Independent)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Governor of Rhode Island
Incumbent Daniel McKee defeated Helena Foulkes, Nellie Gorbea, Matt Brown, and Luis Daniel Muñoz in the Democratic primary for Governor of Rhode Island on September 13, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Daniel McKee | 32.8 | 37,288 | |
| Helena Foulkes | 29.9 | 33,931 | ||
| Nellie Gorbea | 26.2 | 29,811 | ||
| Matt Brown | 7.9 | 9,021 | ||
| Luis Daniel Muñoz | 3.1 | 3,547 | ||
| Total votes: 113,598 | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Kalilu Camara (D)
- Seth Magaziner (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Governor of Rhode Island
Ashley Kalus defeated Jonathan Riccitelli in the Republican primary for Governor of Rhode Island on September 13, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Ashley Kalus | 83.7 | 17,188 | |
| Jonathan Riccitelli | 16.3 | 3,351 | ||
| Total votes: 20,539 | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Emmanuel Adjei (R)
- Michael Costa (R)
- David Darlington (R)
- Rey Herrera (R)
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Elijah Gizzarelli completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Gizzarelli's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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What truly separates me from other candidates is not what I'm going to do FOR you, but what I'm going to stop doing TO you.
I am running for Governor to create a more prosperous and harmonious community where every Rhode Island family can not only survive, but thrive!
As Governor, first and foremost, It will be my job to protect every Rhode Islander's civil rights. These include, but are not limited to, the rights to life, liberty, self-determination and bodily autonomy.
- I will free any inmate with a non-violent drug conviction and send them back to their families and our communities. These people have never hurt or stolen from anybody.
- I will bring back flavored vapes. Rhode Island is one of only four States to ban flavored vapes. It's an overstep of state power, an infringement on bodily autonomy, and an ill-advised economic policy.
- I will bring back Main Street! Our leaders have spent the past 3 years attacking small businesses, over burdening them with regulations and forcing them closed. Rhode Islanders have been forced to pad the pockets of large corporations instead of local businesses. I will fight to make doing business in Rhode Island as easy and simple as possible.
The drug war is a proven failure, an economic disaster and a humanitarian crisis. We must end it, immediately!
Nobody but you should have a say in what you do with your own body, what you decide to put into it, or what medical procedures you decide to undergo.
We must fight this corrupt, two-party system. With just 5% of the vote, we can take a huge step in challenging politics as usual.
Jesus Christ. There are certainly others who I admire, but none I find to be an example I'd like to follow as they all have their faults and flaws.
Jesus loves the way I'd like to love, he forgives the way I'd like to forgive, he even communicates the way I'd like to communicate.
Also, the Fonze.
I'm not a corrupt insider. I'm a strong leader and effective communicator... And unlike my opponents, I have common sense and human decency.
Ending the drug war in Rhode Island and starting a chain reaction that sweeps the nation.
9/11 happened my second week of high school. I would later join the Army in hopes of defending my countrymen from threats to their lives and liberty. I later realized that the battle to defend American liberties is right here at home.
Ocean Pride Seafood on Atwood Avenue, Cranston.
I stayed throughout the crazy Christmas season over there while I was going to high school at Cranston West, at the age of 15.
War Is A Racket by Major General Smedley Butler.
The most decorated Marine in history explains how the war machine is corrupted. This book was written 20 years before President Eisenhower (A five star General) coined the phrase "military-industrial complex."
Scar Tissue by the Red Hot Chili Peppers
The average cost per student, per year in RI public schools is $19,000.
That's much more than $400,000/yr to run a single classroom.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign website
Gizzarelli's campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
The drug war is an economic disaster and a humanitarian crisis that must end NOW! We currently have people imprisoned at the Adult Correctional Institutions (ACI) who have never hurt or stolen from anybody; their only crime was possessing a substance the government decided they shouldn’t be allowed to have. We must respect the choices people make regarding their own bodies. That includes what they choose to put into their bodies. We have taken Rhode Islanders struggling with addiction out of their communities, out of their jobs, and away from their families. Children are being separated from their mothers and fathers. Families are being destroyed. Households often lose a source of income they were relying on, forcing them onto taxpayer-funded welfare programs. Rhode Island spends the 5th most in the US on incarceration per inmate per year. We pay $50,000 per year to imprison each inmate when the average Rhode Islander only makes $35,000 per year. How is it more expensive to be an inmate in Rhode Island than to be a free resident? Taxpayers foot the bill to prosecute the drug war. Public defenders, judges, prosecutors, and police all waste time and money taking these innocent people away from their families. These public servants’ time would be much better spent focusing on keeping Rhode Islanders safe from violent criminals. Drug addiction should be treated as a mental health issue and not as a crime. The drug war is a proven failure, an economic disaster, and a humanitarian crisis. We can end it, RIGHT NOW! Once elected Governor, on day one I will issue a pardon to all inmates with non-violent drug convictions. We will send them back home to their families with a heartfelt apology.
Rhode Island is one of only four states that have banned flavored vapes. Nobody should have the right to tell you what you can put into your own body! This goes back to bodily autonomy, but it’s more than that. This is an economic blunder! Rhode Island vapers now travel into Connecticut to buy their flavored vapes. During the trip, they spend their money, not just on vapes, but at restaurants, shopping malls, and casinos. So not only is the ban an inconvenience for vapers living in Rhode Island, it’s damaging to all kinds of Rhode Island based businesses.
The Libertarian Party is the third largest political party in the country, yet we are not officially recognized by the state of Rhode Island as an “official” party. In order to become a recognized party in the state of Rhode Island, we must run a candidate for Governor, who must receive 5% of the vote to qualify us for automatic ballot placement for the next four years. That’s right, if we can convince just one in twenty voters to vote for Elijah for governor, we establish a viable alternative to our current failed system. This is a perfect opportunity to vote your conscience and vote for the best candidate. Don’t waste your vote on the two old parties this election. Help us fight back against politics as usual and take the seat at the table that we have rightfully earned. Your vote for Gizzarelli on November 8th will change the political landscape in Rhode Island forever.
Rhode Island’s current political leadership claim they champion policies to help the poor and that they will make corporations and millionaires “pay their fair share.” Yet, in the past two years we’ve witnessed the largest transfer of wealth in history from the lower classes to the upper classes, cheered-on by both sides of the aisle. Governors Raimondo and McKee each forced Rhode Island small businesses to close and made sure everybody had no choice but to spend their money at large corporations – which were exempted from the COVID-19 restrictions that shuttered their smaller competition. As working-class Rhode Islanders try and manage unaffordable gas prices and the steadily increasing cost of living, our tone deaf leadership is prioritizing electric cars and zero-emission leaf blowers. The best way for the government to help small business in Rhode Island is to get out of the way. As Governor, I will direct all departments under my control to eliminate burdensome regulations to ease prices and make doing business in Rhode Island as easy as possible.[2] |
” |
| —Elijah Gizzarelli's campaign website (2022)[3] | ||
See also
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on September 26, 2022
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Elijah Gizzarelli for Governor, “Issues,” accessed October 12, 2022
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