The controversy over the official name of Rhode Island has ended. The voters weighed in tonight, defeating the measure with 170 of 539 precincts reporting. The results indicate that 72,723 voters rejected the proposed name change to just "The State of Rhode Island," while 20,792 approved of keeping "State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations." Regardless of whether voters wanted to keep or change the name because of Rhode Island's historical legacy of slavery, the debate has been advanced and will inform future discussions about this complicated issue.
Read more at Projo.com.