Reed defeated Connor Burbridge, a "small business owner, elder-care worker, community organizer, and a working-class Rhode Islander," according to his campaign website, and Luis Muñoz, a medical school graduate, med tech entrepreneur and former candidate who previously ran for Rhode Island governor in 2018 and 2022, according to Muñoz's LinkedIn profile and local reporting about his previous runs.
The victory sends Reed to the November general election against Ray McKay, who ran unopposed in his primary, and independent Michael Bahry.
DEM ESTABLISHMENT STRIKES BACK AS LONGTIME INCUMBENT FENDS OFF PROGRESSIVE CHALLENGER
Reed, who cites that working-class background as pivotal to his upbringing, attended West Point later in life, and ultimately spent time in the Army before getting a Master's degree in public policy and a law degree from Harvard.
Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, has supported continued military assistance to despite criticizing Israeli Prime Minister and calling for renewed efforts toward a two-state solution.
He was first elected to the in 1996 after serving three terms in the House, and in addition to being the ranking Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, Reed also serves on the Appropriations, Banking and Intelligence committees.
His campaign reported roughly $3.4 million in total receipts during the 2025-2026 election cycle through Aug. 20 and had nearly $3.1 million in cash on hand, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) records.
By comparison, Burbridge reported raising just over $25,000 through Aug. 20, while the FEC listed no fundraising totals for Muñoz's campaign ahead of the primary.