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The island's tick problem started with four deer in 1967 · Rhode Island votes September 9, and island polls open two hours late · There's a phone cradle on the Crescent Beach stairs, and it's doing science
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The ballot

Best of the Block 2026 seal — Get Block Island Readers' Choice Awards

Voting for the 2026 cycle is closed. The ballots are counted and this year's winners are up — including the three dethroned champions. The next ballot opens in early summer; one ballot per person, basic anti-stuffing controls, no purchased placement — the whole methodology is in the awards hub.

Want a reminder when voting reopens? The newsletter is how islanders find out first.

Think a category is missing? The 2026 cycle added Best Restaurant by reader demand — pitch us the next one.

Sponsored

Ballard's — A Block Island Tradition. The beach day your friends keep talking about.

How it works

The categories. Eleven in the 2026 cycle: Best Restaurant, Best Lobster Roll, Best Mudslide, Best Beach, Best Pizza, Best Coffee, Most Romantic Spot, Best Bachelor/Bachelorette Destination, Best Hiking Spot, Most Dog-Friendly Spot, and Most Instagrammable Spot. Categories evolve when readers make a case.

The rules. One ballot per person, one vote per email, light rate limiting to keep the enthusiastic honest. Businesses can encourage their fans to vote — that's democracy — but they can't buy placement, sponsor a category, or preview results. Close races get called close in the write-up.

The timeline. Ballots open in early summer, close mid-July, winners publish in late July, and badge kits go out to winners in August — in time for the shoulder season windows. Past results: 2025 · 2026.