R.I. elections board OKs $140K contract for long-awaited campaign finance software upgrade

Rhode Island’s antiquated campaign finance software system is poised for a refresh under a $140,000, one-year contract approved by the Board of Elections Tuesday.

The panel’s unanimous vote sets in motion the long-awaited upgrade to the electronic system used to report and share information about campaign donations and spending.

Rhode Island’s campaign finance software hasn’t been updated since its 2002 debut. The need to bring it into the modern era was never in dispute: The outdated system can’t accommodate certain, state-mandated reports including disclosure of independent expenditures and donations by political action committees and affidavits from vendors awarded high-dollar state contracts. And, it risks major disruptions when problems arise — most of the software engineers who designed the legacy system have retired, or are approaching retirement age.

But the extra money needed to pay for the refresh proved a problem, initially. The Rhode Island Board of Elections asked for an extra $250,000 in its fiscal 2026 budget request for software upgrades. Gov. Dan McKee did not include any of that money in his budget proposal.



https://rhodeislandcurrent.com/2025/06/18/r-i-elections-board-oks-140k-contract-for-long-awaited-campaign-finance-software-upgrade/