Four contested Fall River area seats in the Legislature: the Senate and House candidates side by side

FALL RIVER Four contested seats in the Legislature are on ballots in Fall River and its neighbors today, Tuesday, Nov. 3: one state Senate seat and three state House seats. In each, a Democratic incumbent faces a Republican challenger. Polls open by 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.

Below, each race lists its candidates in ballot order, then the same topics in the same order: taxes and the town's budget, housing, roads and transit, school money, public safety and energy bills. Every position is the candidate's own, from the campaign's website or releases. A topic neither candidate in a race has addressed is left out of that race. The incumbents' recorded votes follow, the same roll calls for every member of the same chamber.

Which district are you in

• State Senate, 1st Bristol and Plymouth: Fall River, Freetown, Somerset, Swansea and Westport, plus Lakeville and Rochester in Plymouth County.
• State representative, 6th Bristol: Fall River Ward 5, Precincts B and C; Ward 6, Precinct C; all of Wards 7, 8 and 9; and Freetown Precinct 1.
• State representative, 7th Bristol: Fall River Ward 1, Precincts B and C; all of Wards 2, 3 and 4; and Ward 5, Precinct A.
• State representative, 8th Bristol: all of Westport; Fall River Ward 1, Precinct A, and Ward 6, Precincts A and B; Acushnet Precincts 2 and 3; Freetown Precincts 2 and 3; and New Bedford Ward 1, Precincts B1 and C.

The state's Where Do I Vote lookup shows the districts and polling place for any address.

State Senate, 1st Bristol and Plymouth: Michael J. Rodrigues and Gabriel Boomer Amaral

• Michael J. Rodrigues: Democrat, of Westport, the incumbent. His Substack page says he chairs the Senate Ways and Means Committee.
• Gabriel Boomer Amaral: Republican, of Fall River, the challenger.

Neither Rodrigues's campaign nor Amaral's has published a position on the topics this page compares, so this race lists the candidates and the incumbent's recorded vote.

Rodrigues's record

On July 1, 2026, the Senate voted 39 to 1 to enact H.5555, the state budget for the fiscal year that began that day, Senate Roll Call No. 200. Rodrigues voted yes.

State representative, 6th Bristol: Carole A. Fiola and Robert G. Anctil

• Carole A. Fiola: Democrat, of Fall River, the incumbent, sworn in Sept. 25, 2013. Her campaign site says she is House chair of the Economic Development and Emerging Technologies Committee.
• Robert G. Anctil: Republican, of the Assonet section of Freetown, the challenger. His campaign site says he is a master plumber who founded a commercial plumbing firm in 1991 and is a former chairman of the Berkley Board of Selectmen and Finance Committee.

Taxes and the town's budget

Fiola's campaign has not published a position on taxes and the town's budget.

Anctil's platform calls for a "Local Aid Restoration Act" that would lock "100% of net Lottery proceeds" into unrestricted local aid for Fall River and Assonet, which he says would end municipal budget deficits and stop Proposition 2 1/2 overrides. He would also have the state pay all of Chapter 115 veterans' benefits, lifting the 25% share cities and towns now carry.

Housing

Fiola's campaign has not published a position on housing.

Anctil says veterans should get "top-priority placement" in state-assisted public housing and emergency shelters. He says state economic incentives should go to turning vacant mills into manufacturing sites "instead of subsidizing market-rate apartments."

School money

Fiola announced $172,898.30 in earmarks for Fall River Public Schools in a Sept. 29 release, including $120,000 for special education and after-school program transportation. "Building on the progress made through increased Chapter 70 funding over the past seven years, we continue to look for meaningful ways to invest in our students," she said. "We know that transportation costs are a burden to city and town budgets."

Anctil says he would eliminate "the artificial 4.5% statutory cap" on school inflation adjustments, seek state "Catch-Up Grants" to repay Fall River Public Schools for lost aid, quadruple minimum per-student aid and have the state pay all regional school transportation.

Energy bills

Fiola's campaign has not published a position on energy bills.

Anctil says he will vote to repeal state net-zero mandates that he says "artificially inflate monthly electric and gas delivery charges," protect the choice of natural gas, oil or propane heat and halt state-approved utility rate increases.

State representative, 7th Bristol: Alan Silvia and Talos D. Farris

• Alan Silvia: Democrat, of Fall River, the incumbent.
• Talos D. Farris: Republican, of Fall River, the challenger. His campaign site says he is a Navy veteran and the city's director of veterans services.

Taxes and the town's budget

Silvia's campaign has not published a position on taxes and the town's budget.

Farris's campaign site says he will push for "lowering taxes" and "a disciplined approach to state spending."

Housing

Silvia's campaign has not published a position on housing.

Farris says he will pursue "housing solutions tied to local income realities." With the city redeveloping its waterfront, his site says: "Growth must work for the people who already live here."

Public safety

Silvia's campaign has not published a position on public safety.

Farris says police, firefighters and emergency crews "should not be asked to do more with less," and backs money for training, staffing, technology and buildings, alongside "transparency and community trust."

Energy bills

Silvia's campaign has not published a position on energy bills.

Farris says he wants to change "the energy policies to lower costs" and calls for "smarter energy decisions."

State representative, 8th Bristol: Steven J. Ouellette and Jesse W. St. Gelais

• Steven J. Ouellette: Democrat, of Westport, the incumbent.
• Jesse W. St. Gelais: Republican, of Acushnet, the challenger. His campaign site says he has worked 24 years in insurance and runs an insurance agency.

Taxes and the town's budget

Ouellette's campaign has not published a position on taxes and the town's budget.

St. Gelais says state mandates passed without money leave "local property taxpayers to foot the bill," and he calls for "a top-to-bottom audit" of state spending.

Roads and transit

Ouellette's campaign has not published a position on roads and transit.

St. Gelais lists "fair state funding for local roads and infrastructure" among his goals.

School money

Ouellette's campaign has not published a position on school money.

St. Gelais lists "support for local schools and municipal services" among his goals.

Public safety

Ouellette's campaign has not published a position on public safety.

St. Gelais lists "resources for police, fire departments, and public safety" among his goals.

Energy bills

Ouellette's campaign has not published a position on energy bills.

St. Gelais calls for "an immediate halt to the offshore wind boondoggle" and for "greater scrutiny of utility-related fees and costs."

How the three House incumbents voted

Fiola, Silvia and Ouellette sit in the same chamber, so each is shown on the same four House roll calls.

• State budget, July 1, 2026: The House voted 142 to 6 to enact H.5555, the budget for the fiscal year that began that day (Yea and Nay No. 224). Fiola, Silvia and Ouellette voted yes.
• Gas tax holiday, Oct. 21, 2026: Amendment 160 to the supplemental budget would have required gas stations to cut prices by the state gas tax for 60 days. It failed 30 to 122 (No. 271). Silvia and Ouellette voted yes, and Fiola voted no.
• Offshore wind money, Oct. 21, 2026: Amendment 183 would have struck the bill's Section 116, a transfer of state money into the Massachusetts Offshore Wind Industry Investment Trust Fund. It failed 25 to 127 (No. 272). All three voted no.
• Supplemental budget, Oct. 21, 2026: The House passed the supplemental budget for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 152 to 0 (No. 275). All three voted yes.

The October votes are explained in full in our Legislator Watch for the week of Oct. 19. Money raised and spent by all eight campaigns through Sept. 30 is in our look at the contested South Coast legislative races.

Where to vote

Polls are open until 8 p.m. Polling places and what to bring are in our Election Day guide, and results will post on the SC360 Election Center after the polls close.

Mail ballots postmarked by Election Day still count if the clerk receives them by 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6, under state election law.

Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.