PROVIDENCE — State Representative David Morales, a democratic socialist, beat incumbent Mayor Brett Smiley on Wednesday to win the Democratic nomination for mayor of Providence. The result will deliver a major victory for the progressive wing of the party locally and nationally.
The Associated Press called the race for Morales at about 8:40 p.m., less than 45 minutes after polls closed.
Smiley, 47, a moderate Democrat, is the first incumbent mayor to lose a primary in the city’s history, and Morales, a 27-year-old progressive, will be planning a dramatic overhaul of City Hall.
“Together, we have made history,” Morales said to a large crowd of cheering supporters in Olneyville Wednesday night.
In his victory speech, he promised to cap rent increases, improve public schools, and use “every tool that we have at our disposal to defend our immigrant community and protect us from the fascist ICE agents.”
“While many agreed with the vision, few believed that a 27-year-old democratic socialist could ever ... take on big money, corporate real estate interests, and endless attack ads,” Morales said.
Morales was outspent 5-to-1 by Smiley, whose campaign spent more than $2 million in 2026. Morales captured voters through grass-roots campaigning, constant social media videos, and digital advertising, rather than traditional TV ads.
Smiley went on the attack during the campaign, focusing on Morales’s previous support for defunding the police. Morales, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, repeatedly disavowed the policy — which is part of the DSA platform — and said he would hire more police officers.
Smiley called Morales Wednesday night to concede, and Morales said in his speech that he thanked Smiley for his service to Providence.
More than 100 of Smiley’s supporters watched in shock as Morales was declared the winner. The crowd of mostly city employees, lobbyists, and leaders slowly sipped beers at Narragansett Brewery in the city’s Fox Point neighborhood as they digested the political earthquake that has hit Providence. Smiley’s senior staff hugged supporters and fought back tears.
In a concession speech, Smiley said he was proud of the campaign he ran and of his administration, touting the construction of new housing and schools and its work focusing on making the city safer.
“My time as mayor will come to an end in a couple months, but there is still important work to be done,” Smiley said. “Providence must continue to confront the housing crisis, and we need to keep building our way out of it. We need to continue to improve outcomes for our students, and I hope the next mayor focuses relentlessly on improving outcomes for our kids at Providence public schools.”
As the race was called, cheers of “David, David,” erupted in the crowd outside Riff Raff, a bookstore-bar in Olneyville, where a large crowd awaited Morales’s victory speech.
Morales said his campaign was “centered around a simple vision: that the working people who make Providence home deserve to live here.”
“Together we ignored the cynicism,” he said. “Together we refused to lower our expectations. Together we organized day in and day out, sharing our vision on how we build a city all our neighbors can afford and feel safe calling home.”
Morales’s top campaign promise was to implement limits on annual rent increases, appealing to frustrated renters being continually squeezed by the city’s hot market. Smiley vetoed legislation to do so earlier this year, and the Providence City Council failed to drum up enough votes to override the veto.
The legislation would have limited rent increases to 4 percent a year, but had a wide swath of exemptions. Smiley argued it would therefore be luck, rather than income levels, that determined whether renters got to live in a rent-stabilized unit.
Smiley had won his first term in 2022 with 42 percent of the vote in a three-way primary. He governed as a moderate Democrat and focused on quality-of-life issues such as potholes, the illegal use of off-road vehicles on city streets, park renovations, and sidewalk repairs. But he was criticized for doing a poor job cleaning up after a January snowstorm.
After being generally praised for his leadership during the Brown University mass shooting and subsequent manhunt in December 2025, attention almost immediately turned to rent control in January, when the City Council introduced its ordinance. The issue dominated city politics for most of this year. After the veto override failed, progressive groups promised to work to oust Smiley, and Morales said he would sign such legislation if he were elected mayor.
The general election is on Nov. 3, and Morales will be a heavy favorite in deep-blue Providence to win against Republican Dave Talan. The new mayor will take office in January 2027.
This story has been updated to include information from the candidates election night parties.
Steph Machado can be reached at steph.machado@globe.com. Follow her @StephMachado. Dan McGowan can be reached at dan.mcgowan@globe.com. Follow him @danmcgowan. Christopher Gavin can be reached at christopher.gavin@globe.com.