WOONSOCKET – Upstart Democrat Veronicka Vega scored a win over independent House District 49 Rep. Jon Brien on Tuesday, earning the right to represent the Woonsocket and North Smithfield district at the Statehouse.
Vega, 26, took home 1,353 votes, or 51.64 percent, to 1,250 votes for Brien, or 47.71 percent.
Her margin of victory came from the much larger Woonsocket side of the district, where she received 1,172 votes to Brien’s 970 votes. North Smithfield residents went with Brien, but it was a fraction of the total, at 280 votes to 181 votes.
“Nine months ago I made the decision to run for office. With zero campaign experience, I took a leap of faith and tomorrow it all comes to an end,” Vega posted the night before Election Day.
She spoke of her humble roots in the city.
“The most rewarding part of this experience has been connecting with my neighbors. Whether on doors or online, we all have so much more in common than you think,” she said. “My parents got their first apartment on First Avenue and I got mine on Third. In middle school, we lived in a motel. I walked to school every day from Winter Street to WHS because my family couldn’t afford a car. We walked to CCA in the cold to get a Thanksgiving meal box while pushing my baby sister in a stroller.”
She added, “I took RIPTA to JWU every morning and then back to Woonsocket to work at Walgreens. Eating my dinner on the bus was part of my routine. One of my professors asked us what we wanted to do to improve our mental or physical health. My answer was to make time to sit down and enjoy a meal every day without rushing.”
She said she doesn’t say all this for sympathy, but to ground people in the reality of living in poverty.
“It feels impossible to ever make it out. It’s tiring,” she said. “I never got involved in politics because who has the time when you’re busy just surviving? I dreamed of just having my bills paid on time, a car, and never having to worry about food.”
She added, “Tomorrow I hope that I’m elected and I can be a voice for people that have struggled and continue to in my community. We deserve to be able to afford basic necessities without struggling, parents should have time to spend with their kids, kids shouldn’t worry about where their next meal is coming from.
“Woonsocket should have consistent and frequent RIPTA service, safe and affordable homes, businesses that last more than 1 year, a community college annex, safe schools, businesses that employ locals and pay them a livable wage with opportunities to excel.”
Whatever the outcome, she said, the campaign was an amazing experience.
Vega sits on the board of directors for Sojourner House, the Downtown Woonsocket Collaborative, and McAuley Ministries. She has completed Rhode Island League of Cities and Town’s Municipal Leadership Academy, Leadership RI’s College Leadership Program, and the Women’s Fund of RI’s Women’s Policy Institute.
Brien, a conservative independent, had run on slogans of people over politics and declaring independence from politics as usual. He’d highlighted his “proven track record of legislative achievements that have improved the lives of the people of my district, city, and state.”
