Chris Blazejewski is still trying to get used to his role as Rhode Island’s House Speaker. Two months ago he replaced Joe Shekarchi, a longtime political ally who stepped down as House Speaker to pursue a vacancy on the Rhode Island Supreme Court.
Blazejewski made headlines last month after his legislation creating an independent Office of the Inspector General passed in the 2026-27 state budget. He recently sat down with Ocean State Media political reporter Ian Donnis to talk about his new role and priorities.
Interview highlights
On his support for creating an Office of Inspector General in Rhode Island
Chris Blazejewski: After I became speaker about two months ago, one of the things that I wanted to do was work on something that would help restore trust and faith in government, given some recent high-profile failures we’ve had in the state. We had the near collapse of the Washington Bridge. We had the partial collapse of a portion of an Amtrak overpass in Cranston. We had a failure of a $100 million payroll system for state employees that caused harm to those employees. So when we created the Inspector General’s office using our information we had from all the states, including legislation that had been introduced by various legislators over the years, we put together what we thought was the best bill. Separation of powers is a key component to it. 99.5% of all state spending is now subject to an independent Office of Inspector General.
On the increase in state spending in recent years
Blazejewski: That’s part of the reason why we created an Inspector General’s office, to be sure that we’re providing accountability to the public; to make sure they know that every state dollar is being used as effectively and efficiently as possible. That’s the value of having that kind of office that’ll provide that independent accountability for our administrative agencies. But I’d also add, it’s very easy to say that we spend too much money in state government. Every dollar that you see being spent in state government is supporting a program that answers questions for working families, questions about whether or not they can see a doctor, whether they can feed themselves that day, whether they can get an education for the kids through the public schools…
So while, yes, there’s discussion about the overall size and scope of government — I think that that’s important — we all need to know that the services we’re providing are some of the most basic services that help families and children. Those services were so important to me as a child and continue to be important to me as a parent as I raise my own children.
On former House Speaker Joe Shekarchi pursuing a seat on the Rhode Island Supreme Court
Blazejewski: I can just say that, personally, having worked with Speaker Shekarchi, I just know where his heart is. He’s worked very hard for the state. He cares about a lot of the issues that impact families in Rhode Island. But as to the legal process, that has no role whatsoever in the legislature until the governor makes an appointment. Part of the argument from Speaker Shekarchi is that the Supreme Court is a constitutional office. For example, State Representative Jason Knight is running for attorney general. There’s nothing barring him from doing that.
Right now it’s playing through the process. My understanding (is) there’s an ethics commission process that’s currently playing out, and also a judicial process that’s playing out. There’s no role whatsoever for the legislature there. Those institutions will make their decisions and then rule accordingly. I expect that process to play out in whatever time period is appropriate for those entities. Again, none of this really impacts the legislature at this time.
On how Democrats can be more successful at the national level
Blazejewski: I look forward to seeing where our party’s going. I think that it’s long overdue for the Democratic Party to have a real conversation about what Americans are looking for, and in Rhode Island, what Rhode Islanders are looking for. I think that things happening at the national level are the beginning of a conversation about what our party looks like going forward, and who we’re serving and how we can remember that there are people being left behind that we cannot forget about. If we want to be the party of the majority, we cannot forget that there are working men and women in our state — and children and families — that rely on state support and services and education and healthcare. We cannot forget them when we look at what our national policy is going to look like going forward.
