PAWTUCKET – Incumbent State Rep. Leonela Felix, now in office for six years since her big 2020 election win over an incumbent, faces a challenge in the Sept. 9 primary from fellow Democrat Mark Theroux.
Felix, who works as an assistant city solicitor for the city of Providence, lives on Carter Avenue in Pawtucket with her dogs, Chiquita and Nena. Describing herself as an “anti-machine” candidate, she is running on a platform of continuing to fight for the working families of the district through legislation that benefits them, including advocating for their rights and ability to make and keep a living.
She says her background coming from a family that didn’t have many advantages gives her a particular connection with many people in the district.
Theroux, a retired city detective who is now associate director of facilities management for the Providence Housing Authority, lives on Rice Street with his wife of 32 years, Sarah. They have a son Ryan, 33, and daughter, Kali. He say he is running on a platform of fighting for issues that matter most to working families, including tax relief and more state funding.
He says his job in Providence gives him him a new perspective coming from what most would see as the other side of public service, and a better understanding that life is a little more than just outcomes, but “how we got here and some of the struggles faced in our communities.”
Back in 2020, Felix handily defeated former incumbent Rep. Raymond Johnston for the seat. Johnston, also a former Pawtucket detective, died unexpectedly a year later. She didn’t face a challenger in the Democratic primary in the two elections of 2022 and 2024.
Felix’s twin sister, Gena, is running for the Senate District 8 seat against incumbent Sen. Lori Urso, and the sisters say they’ve been enjoying doing a lot of campaigning together.
Theroux came in a distant third place 10 years ago as part of a three-way primary for the Senate District 8 seat, with former Sen. Jamie Doyle winning the seat and Matt Fecteau taking second.
Among her biggest accomplishments, Felix lists her successful push for greater voting rights access, expungement for cannabis-related offenses, and this year’s “364-Day Bill” for immigration protection, keeping ICE away from courthouses. Sponsored by Felix and Sen. Jonathon Acosta, it clarifies the legal definitions of misdemeanors and felonies, and defines a year as 364 days to close a federal immigration loophole that can trigger deportation for minor offenses.
She says her work is aligned with the concert of average constituents, and she tries to model her approach after what she’s hearing on the ground.
Felix said she and her sister are very much against the political machine that she says has been active in Pawtucket for centuries, and she is actively supporting Adam Greenman’s campaign for mayor. Sixteen years is too long for people to stay in office, she said, as it leads to a lack of focus on working people. Asked if she will hold herself to that standard, she said yes, believing in term limits and having no intention of staying on longer than eight or 10 years total.
As for Theroux, he says Pawtucket deserves a state representative who knows the community “because they’ve lived it.” Since 1986, he and his wife have called the city home and raised their family here, he said, and he dedicated his earlier career to serving the city as a detective.
He said he’s cautiously optimistic about this race, but understands that Felix handily defeated an incumbent six years ago. Since one never knows what can happen, he said, just put in the work, share ideas, and urge people to vote based on their convictions.
Theroux said they had an opportunity to leave Pawtucket when he retired, but they ultimately decided that this is their home. Their home on Rice Street backs up to Maplecrest Drive, where they host an annual Halloween haunted tunnel visited by some 800 children per season. A lot of people know him because of those relationships he’s built, he said.
Theroux said he’s running for representative to fight for the issues that matter most to working families:
• Property tax relief
• Lower costs for Rhode Island families
• More state funding for Pawtucket
• Standing up to unfair utility price increases
• Putting neighborhood residents first when it comes to development
“If you’re tired of seeing the cost of living continue to rise while families struggle to stay in the city they love, it’s time for a representative who will fight for Pawtucket every single day,” he says.
He said he strongly supports incumbent Mayor Donald Grebien’s campaign for mayor, disagreeing with Felix that the city is leaving people behind, despite the challenges it faces. Not everything has been easy, Theroux said, but the mayor has had one win after another, including the recent announcement of state funding going toward creation of new affordable residential units at Tidewater Landing, as well as efforts to rebuild schools, which directly affects property values and everyone who lives here.
Felix said she’s in agreement with that these developments should be happening in Pawtucket, as she understands there’s a housing crisis, but contends that it is causing rents to skyrocket in Pawtucket and elsewhere. Her neighbors are thinking about leaving, she said, including a couple she met days ago who have been here 41 years but are now thinking about selling and moving because they can’t afford to stay. She said they told her the city is too focused on developing stadiums, and not enough about how to protect people.
With the stadium, more care should have been taken to follow through on some of what was promised, she said, including actually benefitting local businesses by having designated rotating spaces for them to sell their goods.
Felix has lived in Pawtucket since 2001. Her family is from the Dominican Republic, her mother then working as a tailor in New York.
Felix said she doesn’t know Theroux, but from what she’s seen of him, he’s tackling “no real issues” at the state level and is instead focused on local matters. This isn’t the City Council they’re running for, she emphasized.
Theroux said he’s been getting a lot of positive feedback, and he’s finding the grind of campaigning fun. He said he’s entirely focused on his own campaign, not what his opponent is doing, but he’s been surprised that their paths haven’t crossed yet.
Asked for his analysis of the job Felix has done, he said, after a pause, “I don’t know if she’s doing the job the way I would do it.”
Pawtucket’s delegation in the General Assembly has a responsibility to bring important legislative ideas back to city leaders for consideration to see if they make sense for Pawtucket, stated Theroux. The majority of the delegation is doing that, he added.
Theroux said he believes his responsibility is to the constituents of the district, and those are the people he will speak for.
“Those sometimes are local issues,” he added.
Even if he sounds more focused on local matters, these are issues felt across the state, he said. While his job may not be about passing legislation for Pawtucket specifically, if there are bills that can help Pawtucket, such as ones to make it easier to do business in the state, that’s where he will focus his efforts.
On an issue of particular importance to her, Felix said she’ll continue fighting for working families of the district on affordability, the minimum wage, and battling Rhode Island Energy for “continuously messing with our community.” Three different constituents had their power turned off despite making their best efforts to keep the lights on, she said, and it shouldn’t take her reaching out on behalf of an 86-year-old woman for them to be treated the right way.
“Things like these are what we should be focusing on, not data centers,” she said, adding that if rates are high now, wait until those facilities are in place.
On an issue of particular importance to him, Theroux said he believes in the usefulness of Flock cameras as a tool for law enforcement, but believes in serious checks and balances to maintain stringent oversight. He said he believes Pawtucket has the best police department in the state, and he trusts their judgement, but he wants the city’s police to also perhaps set a model for the rest of the state on acceptable oversight.
