In the final CD1 Democratic primary debate, candidates go on the attack. What was said.

PROVIDENCE – Identity politics came to the forefront during WJAR-TV’s 1st District Congressional debate on Thursday, as multiple rivals for the Democratic primary nomination attacked perceived frontrunner Aaron Regunberg for being a white man in a diverse field of candidates.

“Why not support a progressive woman?” state Sen. Sandra Cano asked Regunberg. The former state representative responded by pointing to his work to elect progressive women and people of color “when it wasn’t politically convenient.”

He named Rep. Leonela Felix, “who I think is one of our best state legislators,” as an example.

“She was taking on an anti-choice, anti-minimum wage, entrenched career politician,” Regunberg said. “And I remember the hurt of her team when she saw a mailer with none other than Senator Cano right there, stumping against a progressive woman of color who had been endorsed by Planned Parenthood and other progressive groups.”

“You’re using them for talking points,” Cano shot back. (After the debate, Cano took to X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, to claim that she did not endorse a candidate in Felix's race and that her name and photo were used on a mailer without permission.)

More: RI's short, crowded and, at times, strange special congressional election

Question about race and gender opens the floodgates

The debate, which took place at Rhode Island College, was split into two segments due to the large number of candidates. All 11 candidates attended, and were assigned to one of the two sessions through a random drawing.

During the first session, moderator Brian Crandall asked whether race and gender should be an issue in the race, opening the floodgates for a heated back-and-forth.

“We need to not just keep having four Caucasian men indefinitely representing us,” said Sen. Ana Quezada.

Regunberg said he agreed that “identity and representation matter a lot, and that’s why I’ve worked hard behind the scenes in every election since 2010 to help support and elect new voices.”

Stephanie Beauté, who describes herself as an IT professional, responded by launching into a blistering attack.

“He leverages the plight of the Black and brown community for his own selfish benefit,” she said, of Regunberg. “He uses the struggle of the poor and working class to say, ‘Look at how I’ve helped you, now you get to work for me.’ … Mr. Regunberg has a symptom, it’s a symptom similar to what Donald Trump has. He believes that as an educated white man that he is the only person here that can defend the working class.”

More: We gave the CD1 special election candidates a quiz on the district. Here's how they did.

Over the weekend, Beauté drew attention by posing for pictures with a mystery van that parked outside a Regunberg rally headlined by Sen. Bernie Sanders. The van displayed digital ads that said “Bernie Sanders once again not supporting a person of color” and "Bernie Sanders once again not supporting a progressive woman.”

She said at Thursday’s debate that she did not pay for the van, “but I do agree with the message.”

When his own turn to speak arrived, Regunberg acknowledged that “I haven’t had some of the experiences that some of the other candidates have.” However, he said, “the work that I’ve done, the values that I bring to politics have been informed by my experiences, my family.”

He noted that his father was killed in a plane crash before he was born and said that he had been raised by “a single, working mom,” which motivated him to work to pass paid sick leave as a legislator.

Amo targeted with criticism while Matos faces fewer attacks

There were fewer fireworks in the second segment of the debate. When the topic of fraudulent signatures submitted by Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos’ campaign came up, some of her rivals showed little interest in criticizing her.

“I think we have litigated this at length,” said former White House and Raimondo-era staffer Gabe Amo, later adding, “We have to focus on what this job is going to be about.”

Providence City Councilman John Goncalves agreed, calling the signatures “a big distraction.”

Later, Goncalves attempted to turn up the heat on Amo, whose campaign recently released a poll putting him in second place to Regunberg.

“I’ve spent nearly the past decade as a teacher in my community, rooted in community,” said Goncalves, adding that he was “not someone who parachuted in from Washington five months ago, and that’s an important distinction.”

“I think it’s flattering to go over my résumé,” Amo, a Pawtucket native, replied when invited to respond to the apparent dig. He reiterated that he had worked for two U.S. presidents, and started out in politics by campaigning for U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse.

“He name-drops President Biden more than the Democratic Party,” Goncalves said. Matos later joined in, saying that Amo was “talking about what somebody else did” when he touted his high-profile experience.

Rival candidates aimed their criticism at Amo once again when a question about Social Security came up.

Spencer Dickinson, a former state representative, noted that former Gov. Gina Raimondo had cut pension cost-of-living adjustments for thousands of retired state employees, and accused Amo of being “basically a soldier for Gina Raimondo.”

“That was Treasurer Raimondo. I worked for Governor Raimondo,” Amo replied, adding, “I think there was a broad consensus that our pension system was incurring a lot of challenges, was not sustainable for the state budget. And there was a broad coalition of folks who came together to make those changes. That said, I think it’s something that state leaders now should look at.”

“There is only one Gina Raimondo,” Matos interjected. “And you cannot distance yourself from her … if you’re going to be using her name when it’s convenient.”

Candidates quizzed on guns, abortion

While questions varied between two sessions, all candidates were asked if they would support codifying Roe v. Wade on the federal level, and a ban on assault-style weapons.

On the abortion question, former Republican Allen Waters was the only outright no. Dickinson would not give a yes or no answer. Rep. Stephen Casey said that he was pro-life, but “will support a woman’s right to choose.”

Amo, Beauté, Cano, Goncalves, Matos, Quezada, Regunberg and former Naval War College Prof. Walter Berbrick all said that they supported codifying abortion rights on the federal level. The same seven candidates agreed on banning assault-style weapons.

Dickinson quibbled with the wording of the question on assault weapons and did not give give a yes or no answer. Neither did Casey, who replied, "This is all rhetoric, we need to get to the root of the problem which is gun violence on the street.” Waters was the only clear no.

How to watch

The second session of the debate will air on WJAR-TV (NBC 10) at 4 p.m. on Friday. Both sessions can be streamed online at turnto10.com.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Last RI special election debate has candidates spar over race, gender