In the end, Democrat Joe Biden scored a big win over Republican Donald Trump in Rhode Island, with 59.1 percent of the vote, compared with 38.9 percent for Trump.

Despite the pandemic, Rhode Island smashed the previous record for voting, with an unofficial total of 507,052 votes (turnout rate of 63 percent) compared with about 475,000 in 2008. Biden edged Barack Obama’s tally from ’08, while Trump got almost 16,000 more votes than he did in ’16 (although his proportion of the vote remained the same).

While Democrats are over the moon over Biden’s apparent presidential win, Trump attracted about 47 percent of the popular vote. Perhaps he’s the apotheosis of the celebrity candidate – someone who would have a sliver of the appeal without Twitter, his years on “The Apprentice,” and a questionable narrative about his business career.

Yet Trump once again won traditionally Democratic Johnston (54.1 percent) and a string of other Rhode Island communities. If the outgoing president is as bad as Democrats insist, why did almost half of voters across the nation support him?

“I think it underscores the polarization of the American society,” U.S. Sen. Jack Reed said on Political Roundtable this week, “and President Trump has exploited this polarization in a very sophisticated way.”

Reed said he believes a Biden presidency would help restore the center in American politics. Yet sluggish growth in wages and economic anxiety have helped fuel movements from Occupy Wall Street to the Tea Party. Without a brighter sense about the future, political parties will continue to reap the whirlwind.

Going to DC?

In a Biden White House, “I will not be defense secretary,” Reed said flatly after our Roundtable taping. The senator’s lack of equivocation is unsurprising, given frequent speculation over the years about his possible place in a Democratic administration – and Reed’s demonstrated commitment to remaining in the Senate.

The real question is posed by Gov. Gina Raimondo’s potential place in a Biden administration. One significant factor is how Lt. Gov. Dan McKee would take over if Raimondo departs – and instantly boost his chances for retaining the governor’s office in 2022, thanks in part to a greatly heightened ability to raise campaign money. There appears to be little love lost between Raimondo and McKee, so the governor would almost certainly assess the balance between possible opportunities in D.C. with the effect that her departure would have in Rhode Island.

On the flip side, Raimondo’s chances of joining the Biden team are on the rise since the president-elect won’t want to pull any Democrats from the Senate. (So much for Elizabeth Warren as Treasury secretary, and Joe Kennedy III running for her seat in Massachusetts.)

Shekarchi rising

In seconding a nomination for House Majority Leader Joe Shekarchi to become the next speaker of the Rhode Island House, Rep. Katherine Kazarian (D-East Providence) didn’t mince words: “Joe has the utmost integrity and he is committed to making our chamber a more professional, welcoming and open-minded workplace. Under his leadership, the days of being bullied and ostracized are over.”

Given the niceties of legislative culture, that was an unusually candid rebuke of House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello, who faced criticism, particularly from female reps, for his handling of a situation with allegations of harassment involving former Rep. Cale Keable.

Following the caucus last week at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick – the same place where Mattiello earlier this year staged one of the best-attended fundraisers of his tenure – there was a palpable sense of relief, even happiness for the female reps in attendance; they believe Shekarchi and his majority leader, Chris Blazejewski (D-Providence), will set a new tone and improve the culture in the House.

For his part, Shekarchi said it’s too early to commit to any specific reforms, but he promises to listen to his members and to value their views. The amount of actual change in the House is a subject that bears watching. Another is the extent to which Shekarchi – who has accrued few, if any, enemies in decades in politics and is known for his genial, even-handed disposition – is changed by the crucible of the speakership.

Mattiello’s fall

It’s easy to forget, given the welter of controversies that accrued during Mattiello’s six years on the rostrum, but his speakership initially flowered as a new era of good feeling. He won plaudits for emphasizing Rhode Island’s business climate, after the fumbling leadership and corruption meltdown of Gordon Fox.

In 2015, Mattiello’s first full year as speaker, the House passed the budget with broad GOP support and – even more incredible – while there was still daylight. But more gum stuck to his shoes the longer he was around, to the point where Mattiello squeaked through with an 85-vote victory over Republican Steve Frias in 2016.

Various reasons explain why Republican Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung scored an 18-point victory over Mattiello last week: HD15 leans conservative, SEIU 1199NE campaigned aggressively against Mattiello, he probably lost a lot of votes due to the abortion issue, and of course, the negative headlines arising from Jeff Britt’s money-laundering trial, including how Frias was surveilled by a PI working for Mattiello’s campaign in ’16.

In sum, HD15 voters had had enough. Even their local representative’s hold on what is sometimes called the most powerful post in state government was not enough to get them to vote for Nicholas Mattiello. As far as the soon-to-be former speaker’s future, don’t be surprised if he lands as a successful lawyer-lobbyist, just like his friend, former speaker William Murphy, the only speaker in recent history to leave on his own terms and without scandal.

Senate sends a message

Senate President Dominick Ruggerio may be the longest-serving member of the General Assembly, but he still has some tricks up his sleeve. In the face of a progressive leadership challenge during a 5 p.m. Friday caucus at the Providence Marriott, Ruggerio not only had the winning votes in the bag, but he and Majority Leader Michael McCaffrey unveiled their support for a series of left-leaning issues, including a $15 minimum wage, budget relief for distressed communities, “a more equitable tax structure,” and adult cannabis use.

What’s more, with legislative leaders facing criticism for an absence of meaningful General Assembly activity going back months, Ruggerio detailed plans for use of an off-site chamber starting in January at the Rhode Island Convention Center. “We are in the process of securing off-site accommodations in the spacious and well-ventilated Convention Center to enable us to meet regularly, and safely,” he said.

In other business, Ruggerio announced a series of new committee chairs, including Sen. Cynthia Coyne of Barrington for Judiciary (succeeding the departing Erin Lynch Prata) and Sen. Ryan Pearson for Finance (succeeding the departing Billy Conley).

At the outset, it was clear Senate leaders would not call the caucus if they didn’t have the votes to maintain their posts. That said, Sen. Gayle Goldin (D-Providence) made her case for Senate president, and a late-entry, Sen.-elect Jeanine Calkin of Warwick, campaigned for the role of majority leader. If nothing else, these challenges show how the level of progressive energy is rising on Smith Hill, possibly setting the stage for dynamic and more frequent debates on a range of policy issues, and moving the legislature to the left.

The challenge of governing

In “The Wire,” the great HBO crime drama, Tommy Carcetti learns the parable of the bowls of dung: after staging a dramatic upset victory to become mayor of Baltimore, the realization dawns that he’s inherited a crappy situation with little real opportunity to change it.

So while Democrats may be elated about ousting President Trump, getting certain stuff done could be between difficult and impossible if the GOP maintains control of the Senate. Under that scenario, U.S. Sen. Jack Reed said, “We’ll have to work with [Mitch McConnell] and through him and around him as necessary to try to get to things done. One of the things we’ve seen is a lack of concern with a lot of issues that are important to people. I mean, they spent a huge amount of time trying to undo the Affordable Care Act. That Act will be before the Supreme Court on November 10. If the Affordable Care Act is taken out by the Republicans, it’ll be chaos in our health care insurance system. The question is, would he [McConnell] rise up and try to repair the damage he’s done? I hope he does.”

Democrats also face crosswinds on redistricting and possible resistance on getting their choices into the administration.

Ian Donnis is the political reporter for The Public’s Radio, Rhode Island’s NPR member station. Listen at 89.3 FM or visit thepublicsradio.org. You can sign up for weekly email delivery of Ian’s column each Friday by following this link: www.lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/PriKkmN/TGIFsignup.