Enrique SanchezServing

Enrique Sanchez

State HouseDemocrat

RI-District 9 State House

Age 29·Mexican-American·State Representative District 9 (since 2023)

Why This Race Matters

Sanchez won re-election in 2024 with 53.4% in the primary, defeating Santos Javier and former incumbent Anastasia Williams again. His current term runs through January 2027. As one of the youngest Latino legislators in New England and a member of the Future Caucus Gen Z cohort, he represents the next generation of progressive Latino leadership.

Sanchez and brother Miguel form a rare Mexican-American political dynasty in Providence. Their grandfather's legacy as founder of Providence's first Mexican market (Tortilleria Sanchez, 1988) makes their story a generational immigrant success narrative. Sanchez drew national attention in 2025 for his vocal anti-ICE activism and faced censure calls from the RI GOP. Endorsed by Senators Tiara Mack and Sam Bell and the Democratic Socialists of America.

About

Enrique G. Sanchez is a Rhode Island State Representative for District 9 in Providence, first elected in 2022 at age 26 after unseating 30-year incumbent Anastasia Williams. A Gen Z legislator and DSA-endorsed progressive, he works as a case manager assisting undocumented young people. His grandfather, Enrique Sanchez Mora, immigrated from Puebla, Mexico and opened Providence's first Mexican market, Tortilleria Sanchez, in 1988.

Family & Heritage

Grandfather Enrique Sanchez Mora grew up in Piaxtla, Puebla, Mexico (born January 11, 1950), immigrated to the United States and settled in Providence. Known as "Don Quique," he opened Tortilleria Sanchez in 1988, Providence's first Mexican food market, where he worked for 25 years. He connected newly arrived immigrants with housing and jobs, and encouraged relatives to start businesses - the extended Sanchez family now owns many of Providence's most popular Mexican restaurants. Brother Miguel Sanchez represents Ward 6 on Providence City Council, making them a Mexican-American political dynasty. Child of working-class parents; renter.

Political Career

Before Politics

Educator in Providence Public Schools; Case manager assisting undocumented young people

Education

BA in Public Relations, Rhode Island College (2019)

Key Issues & Priorities

*Tenant protections and affordable housing
*Education equity and free school meals
*Workers' rights and fair wages
*Immigration justice and anti-ICE advocacy
*Mental health support for youth
*Vocational training expansion

Suggest an Edit