Barrington Democratic Rep. Jason Knight announces his 2026 bid for Rhode Island attorney general at The Guild brewery in Warren on Oct. 6, 2025. (Photo by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)
A squealing microphone kicked off Barrington Democratic State Rep. Jason Knight’s entry into the race for Rhode Island Attorney General Monday night.
The piercing feedback startled Knight’s fellow Democratic Rep. June Speakman. “That was scary,” the Warren lawmaker said before launching into her list of all the reasons why Knight should be the state’s next Attorney General when the office’s current holder, Peter Neronha, finishes his term in 2026.
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“He is wicked smart, he is analytical, he is organized,” said Speakman, who has served with Knight in the General Assembly for six years.
Dozens of supporters — including fellow East Bay lawmakers Rep. Susan Donovan and Sen. Walter Felag — attended Knight’s inaugural campaign event at The Guild, a brewery in Warren that is in Speakman’s district, near the Barrington-Warren line. Knight represents parts of both of these East Bay towns. During his remarks to the crowd, the Providence-born Knight gestured several times at the bay visible outside and noted his love of the Ocean State.
“They don’t make prettier postcards,” Knight said. “Rhode Island is a special place. And it needs an attorney general who can stand up and protect it from criminals and bad actors, whether they are found on the street corner or in the boardroom or in the White House. … I am here tonight to say I am that guy in 2026.”
Speakman told the crowd that Knight can often “speak truth to power,” and that she relies on the Navy veteran — who served eight years as a nuclear power operator — to shape her own political reasoning.
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“I call him in the morning when we have a big bill to vote on at night, and I say, ‘I know how I’m going to vote. Here’s why,’” Speakman recounted. “And then he carefully and clearly explains to me why my position on the bill is wrong.”
“He cites sources. He sends me citations I read for the next three hours, and understand, of course, that he was correct, and he saved me from a bad vote.”
Knight, who worked as a special assistant attorney under Attorney General Patrick Lynch from 2006 to 2010 before opening his own practice as a criminal defense attorney, cited his recent legislative wins as proof of his mettle. He was the lead sponsor on the state’s semiautomatic weapons ban which won General Assembly approval in June.
“After July of 2026, you will not be able to buy an AR-15 in this state,” Knight said.
Knight enters a Democratic primary that already includes Keith Hoffmann, who worked as the chief of policy and senior counsel under Neronha. Hoffmann left the AG’s office in August and formally launched his campaign on Sept. 30 — a bid reinforced by the support of Neronha.
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Neronha, who is term-limited, said recently he will not seek governorship or any other public office after his term ends in 2026.
Knight had $90,419.25 in his campaign account as of the most recent filing from the end of June. Hoffmann’s campaign announced Monday that his account has raised $210,000 since he entered the race.
The contest to become AG has already lost one candidate. On Oct. 2, Rep. Robert Craven, a North Kingstown Democrat, exited the race only four days after announcing his campaign, when past allegations of domestic violence were brought to light. The aftermath rippled further out Monday, with Craven announcing he will not seek reelection as a state representative in 2026. Craven also relinquished his post as chair of the Committee on Judiciary, among the House’s most powerful lawmaking panels.
So far, as of Monday, no Republicans have formally announced their campaigns for Attorney General.
The primary is scheduled for September 2026, and the general election is slated for Nov. 3, 2026.
[SRC] https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/rep-jason-knight-makes-bid-012507521.html
