Pinga

Veteran Sen. J. Michael Lenihan, D-East Greenwich, decisively turned back a primary bid yesterday in District 35, but Senate Democrat Stephen D. Alves, of West Warwick, apparently was toppled in his bid for a ninth term by newcomer Michael J. Pinga, by a scant 17 votes in District 9.

The District 9 contest was winner-take-all. There are no Republican or independent candidates on the November ballot.

In Warwick, Erin P. Lynch narrowly outpaced David A. Bennett for the Democratic nomination in Senate District 31, the seat from which Democrat John C. Revens Jr. is stepping down after four decades.

Lenihan scored a 462-vote margin over his unendorsed challenger, North Kingstown Councilman Steven Campo, according to Lenihan campaign figures.

“It was interesting for me,” Lenihan said.

“I’ve been in politics for 30 years and this was the first primary I’ve ever had. And with turnout this low, it’s really a throw of the dice. You never know who’s going to show up.”

Lenihan, 65, is running for his 10th term. He is chairman of the legislature’s Government Oversight Committee. He was elected to the Senate in 1990, after serving on the East Greenwich Town Council for 12 years. Lenihan and his wife, Patricia, have a daughter, Megan.

Lenihan will face lawyer John A. Pagliarini Jr., a Republican, in the November election.

In the West Warwick Senate primary, victor Pinga declared “I’m feeling great. People wanted a change and that’s what it shows.”

Alves, 49, who heads the powerful Senate Finance Committee, went into the primary with the party endorsement. Last night, he said he was not prepared to concede.

The third candidate in that primary, Paul Paul P. Caianiello, didn’t vote yesterday. He said was mulling the possibility of a write-in campaign in November.

“According to the Board of Elections, Pinga received 994 votes to Alves’ 977. Caianiello received 110.

Pinga, 45, is the owner of Westcott Bakery in West Warwick. He campaigned on a platform focusing on fiscal responsibility, responsible budgeting and removing the “cloud of corruption” looming over the State House and thetown. He and his wife, Jill, have two daughters, Nicole, 11, and Michaella, 8.

Meanwhile, in Warwick’s Senate District 31, Lynch was running on fumes yesterday afternoon. She’d been up since early that morning going from poll station to poll station “shaking hands and kissing babies.” Bennett, 53, spent much of the day campaigning across the area as well. He is a nurse at Butler Hospital in Providence and lives in Warwick with his wife, Ann, and their daughter, Giana. Neither Bennett or Lynch could be reached for comment after the polls closed.

Lynch will face Republican Thomas M. Madden in the general election. According to the state Board of Elections Web site, Lynch had an 11-vote victory over Bennett with all polls reporting.

tbuford@projo.com