Dominick Ruggerio, Rhode Island's longest-serving legislator at nearly 44 years and its Senate president since 2017, died Monday, his office said. He was 76.
Ruggerio, a Democrat, died at Fatima Hospital in North Providence, said Greg Pare, a spokesperson for the Rhode Island Senate. He was hospitalized last week.
Ruggerio announced last April that he was receiving treatment for cancer, but he still sought reelection to the Senate and won in November.
In a statement, Gov. Dan McKee, a fellow Democrat, called Ruggerio “a great friend and true public servant who dedicated his life to lifting up the state he loved.”
McKee said Ruggerio “will always be remembered for his unwavering commitment to supporting working families and strengthening Rhode Island’s economy.”
He directed U.S. and Rhode Island state flags to be flown at half-staff at all state facilities and buildings through the day of Ruggerio's internment.
U.S. Sens. Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, both Democrats, expressed their condolences.
"I will miss Donny’s friendship and his unwavering advocacy for our state and the people who make it a special place,” Reed said in a statement. ”Rhode Island is better today because of Senate President Ruggerio’s leadership and dedication.”
Ruggerio was first elected to the House in 1980, where he served two terms before joining the Senate. He had been Senate majority leader before becoming president. As the chamber's most senior member, he was referred to as its “dean.” He represented District 4, which includes parts of North Providence and Providence.
His legislative biography says he co-sponsored initiatives to “make it easy to do business in Rhode Island by reforming the income tax code, cutting red tape, improving access to capital, and building the skills of the workforce.”
Ruggerio was a big advocate for legalized sports betting in Rhode Island, which started in 2018. He also was a leader on legislation requiring that the state be powered completely by renewable energy by 2033. McKee signed the measure into law in 2022.
"It will keep Rhode Island, home to the nation’s first offshore wind farm, on the forefront of renewable energy innovation. And it will help us harness the power of clean energy as a driver of economic growth and opportunity,” Ruggerio said in a statement at the time.
Ruggerio also successfully sponsored bills to address the opioid epidemic.
The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network said Ruggerio “championed efforts to improve public health and increase access to lifesaving cancer screening tests." It inducted him into its Rhode Island Cancer Caucus in 2022.
Kathleen Layton, a volunteer with the Rhode Island chapter of Moms Demand Action, said Ruggerio also would be remembered for his support for gun safety measures, including strong storage requirements and prohibitions on high capacity magazines and banning guns from schools.
“We mourn alongside the rest of Rhode Island to have lost a great leader, and we are thinking of his family during this difficult time,” she said.
Ruggerio, who was anti-abortion, did not support legislation to preserve federal abortion protections in state law. But he said he was determined not to impose his personal views on other Senate members. Lawmakers passed the bill.
Before joining the General Assembly, Ruggerio was a policy aide for the Office of the Lieutenant Governor from 1977 to 1981. He was an administrator for the New England Laborers Labor Management Coop Trust.
Valarie Lawson, Senate Majority Leader, said Monday at a news conference that the Senate will be canceling all its business “until further notice.”
“As many of you know, whether you agreed with him or not on an issue, his door was always open,” she said. “Many times he put is own point of view aside to listen to the members of this chamber and for the good of the Senate chamber he loved.”
Kathy Mccormack, The Associated Press
