[2] In 2004, he was campaign manager for congressional candidate Melissa Bean, and ran her district office until late 2005.

After the election, Smiley worked for David Cicilline, the mayor of Providence, and opened a political consulting firm.

[7] He dropped out of the mayoral race in August 2014 and endorsed Jorge Elorza, the eventual winner.

[4] In December 2019, Raimondo named Smiley as the new head of the Rhode Island Department of Administration.

[12][13] He won the Democratic primary in September 2022 with 42% of the vote, while Gonzalo Cuervo received 36% and Nirva LaFortune earned 22%.