Representative Christopher R. Blazejewski
House Majority Leader
Christopher R. Blazejewski (D) was first elected in November 2010 and
represents District 2 in Providence. He was first elected by his Democratic
colleagues to serve as the House Majority Leader in November 2020, and was
re-elected in November 2022 and November 2024. As a representative, Leader
Blazejewski has championed housing affordability, environmental protection,
public education, civil rights, senior services, health care, and economic
opportunity for working families.
Representative Blazejewski led
passage of legislation aimed at improving
housing affordability for Rhode Islanders of all income levels,
including historic levels of funding to build more affordable housing for
low and moderate income residents and support for people experiencing
homelessness. He also cosponsored and led passage of laws
banning housing rental application fees as well as
housing discrimination on the basis of source of income, including
housing vouchers, veteran's benefits, and Social Security income.
Representative Blazejewski cosponsored and led passage of the
Act on Climate, requiring the state to reach net zero emissions based on
current climate science and providing for an equitable and just transition
and inclusion of environmental justice communities most vulnerable to the
effects of climate change. He also led passage of the most robust
renewable energy standard in the country, setting Rhode Island on course
to 100% renewable electricity by 2033, and funding to help Rhode Island
transition to a clean energy future.
Representative Blazejewski led
passage of legislation to
rebuild and repair our public school buildings and school infrastructure
so students can learn in schools that are warm, safe, dry, and equipped for
21st century learning. He also led passage of additional state funding
for
public education, including for early childhood learning, multi-language
learners, special education, and higher poverty school districts.
Representative Blazejewski cosponsored and led passage of the
Reproductive Privacy Act, which protects reproductive rights in Rhode
Island by codifying in state law the privacy rights and reproductive
freedoms in Roe v. Wade. He cosponsored and led passage of the
Equality in Abortion Coverage Act, which provides access to reproductive
health care for all Rhode Islanders regardless of where they get their
health insurance.
He also cosponsored and led passage of laws
prohibiting high
capacity firearms magazines, banning
firearms from school grounds, and banning
untraceable firearms - “ghost guns" and 3D-printed guns - in Rhode
Island.
Representative Blazejewski cosponsored and led passage of
legislation ensuring
pay equity for Rhode Island workers regardless of sex, race, sexual
orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, age, or country of
ancestral origin. He sponsored a law making
noncompetition agreements unenforceable against hourly and low-wage
employees, children, and college students.
He sponsored the
Wavemaker Fellowship program, which aims at attracting and retaining
graduates in the fields of science, technology, engineering, design,
education, and medicine through tax credits for student loan payments.
He also cosponsored the
fair chance licensing law protecting Rhode Islanders from being denied
occupational licenses because of unrelated criminal convictions.
Representative Blazejewski led passage of legislation aimed at lowering the
cost of prescription drugs and treatments, including codifying the federal
Affordable Care Act into Rhode Island law, limiting out-of-pocket costs
for
specialty drugs and
insulin, and making
HIV-prevention medications free and accessible to qualifying patients.
He also sponsored laws creating the
Deborah DeBare Domestic Violence Prevention Fund and expanding the
crime victims' compensation fund to assist domestic violence survivors
and their children and families.
Representative Blazejewski graduated
from Harvard University in 2002 and received his law degree from Harvard Law
in 2005. An attorney, he works for Sherin and Lodgen LLP. He is licensed to
practice law in Rhode Island and Massachusetts and is a member of the Rhode
Island Bar Association.
Representative Blazejewski was born on Dec. 3,
1979. A lifelong Rhode Islander, he resides in Providence with his wife, Ami
Gada, their daughter, Aria, and their son, Liam.