Political career of David Paterson

Last updated
David Paterson at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival David Paterson 2 by David Shankbone.jpg
David Paterson at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival

Prior to becoming Governor of New York, David Paterson served in the New York State Senate, eventually becoming Senate minority leader.

Contents

State senate

In 1985, Paterson resigned his position as assistant district attorney to join the then city clerk David Dinkins' successful campaign to win the Democratic nomination for Manhattan Borough President. That summer, on August 6, state senator Leon Bogues died, and Paterson sought and obtained the Democratic party nomination for the seat. In mid-September, a meeting of 648 Democratic committee members on the first ballot gave Paterson 58% of the vote. That October, Paterson won the hotly contested special State Senate election. [1] [2] At the time, the 29th Senate district covered the Manhattan neighborhoods of Harlem, Manhattan Valley and the Upper West Side, the same district that Paterson's father had represented. [3] Upon his election, Paterson became the youngest State Senator in Albany. He won the seat again in 1986 for a full term representing the 29th District in the New York State Senate, and served as senator until assuming the office of Lieutenant Governor on January 1, 2007. (The districts changed for the 2002 election.) [4] [5]

In 1993 Paterson ran citywide in the Democratic primary for the office of New York City Public Advocate, the second highest elected office in the city. He lost to Mark Green, who received 45 percent of the primary vote; Paterson was second in the five-candidate race, with 19 percent of the vote. [6] Paterson did not have the support in the 1993 effort from senior Harlem Democratic leaders, David Dinkins, Percy Sutton, Charles Rangel or his father, Basil Paterson. [7] In 1997, Paterson also campaigned for Manhattan borough president; when he withdrew from the race, he worked for the election of C. Virginia Fields, who won the office. [8]

On 9/11, Paterson was at his Harlem apartment when the Twin Towers were hit. [9]

A member of the Democratic National Committee and a board member of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, Paterson addressed the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston as well as the Democratic mayors at the U.S. Conference of Mayors. [3]

Senate minority leader

Paterson was elected by the Democratic caucus of the Senate as Minority Leader on November 20, 2002, becoming both the first non-white state legislative leader and the highest-ranking African American elected official in the history of New York State, unseating the incumbent Minority Leader, Martin Connor. Since the Great Depression, only one party caucus leader has been unseated in either legislature; Paterson succeeded without the help of a powerful patron, and owed no debts to other Democratic party leaders. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver sided with Connor, as did Brooklyn party leader Assemblyman Clarence Norman Jr. [10] [11] Paterson's ouster of Connor had been an alliance of Manhattan senators against the Brooklynite Connor's more suburban-friendly politics. [12] His conciliatory withdrawal from the Manhattan borough president race, and his 2001 effort organizing Harlem elected officials to support the mayoral candidacy of Fernando Ferrer earned Paterson support in the Harlem and Manhattan Democratic leadership. "When I went to them and told them I was running for minority leader," Mr. Paterson said of his Harlem elders, "they were not only supportive, they were enthusiastic." [8] David Dinkins telephoned wavering Democratic senators, lobbying them to support Paterson in the contest. Paterson indicated his long-term goals were to increase the number of Democratic Senators and, eventually, win a majority of the Senate. [8]

Paterson became known for his consensus-building style coupled with sharp political skills. [13] Charles J. O'Byrne, who was his Chief of Staff and worked for him during his time as Governor, joined his staff while working as Minority Leader. Paterson worked with then DEP Commissioner Christopher O. Ward to ensure that New York City's third water tunnel received state approval and funding. [14] Paterson later appointed Ward to be Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

In 2006, Paterson sponsored a controversial bill to limit the use of deadly force by the police, but later changed that position. He also supported non-citizen voting in New York local elections. According to the New York Post , he "chalked up a heavily liberal record." [15]

Describing Paterson's tenure in the senate, The New York Times cited his "wit, flurries of reform proposals and unusual bursts of candor." [16] On March 12, 2008, Melissa Mansfield wrote in Newsday that "many good government groups expect that efforts to clean up Albany would continue" under his governorship, based on his reform record in the legislature, but a legislative opponent, Sen. Dean Skelos, asserted that Paterson "carries an urban agenda against fairness to the suburban communities." [17]

Previously, Paterson had been mentioned as a possible successor to Senator Hillary Clinton should Clinton win the Democratic nomination and also the 2008 U.S. presidential election. [18] [19] Paterson was a 2008 Democratic party national convention superdelegate and endorsed Clinton. [20]

Arrest for civil disobedience

On March 18, 1999, Paterson, his father Basil, former Manhattan Borough President Percy Sutton, Kweisi Mfume, then-president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and 55 others were arrested by members of the New York Police Department for disorderly conduct. [21] Paterson and the others were taking part in acts of civil disobedience to protest the shooting death of Amadou Diallo, an unarmed African immigrant who was shot by four white police officers. The demonstration was organized by Rev. Al Sharpton. The acts of civil disobedience at Police Plaza were directed at then New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who ridiculed the protesters. [21]

Works

Further reading

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel J. O'Donnell</span> American politician

Daniel J. O'Donnell is an American politician from the state of New York. A Democrat, he is a member of the New York State Assembly. O'Donnell represents the 69th district in Manhattan, made up of the neighborhoods of Manhattan Valley, Morningside Heights, and portions of the Upper West Side and West Harlem. He is the older brother to Rosie O'Donnell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 New York gubernatorial election</span> Election in New York

The 2006 New York gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2006, to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of New York, concurrently with elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections, then incumbent Republican governor George Pataki chose not to run for re-election in a fourth term. Democrat Eliot Spitzer, the New York Attorney General, won the election over former Republican state Assembly minority leader John Faso. As of 2023, this is the last time the Governor’s office in New York changed partisan control.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">C. Virginia Fields</span> American politician

Clara Virginia Fields better known as C. Virginia Fields is an American activist who served as Borough President of Manhattan. She was elected in 1997 and reelected in 2001, with her second term expiring at the end of 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lieutenant Governor of New York</span> Political office of the government of New York, US

The lieutenant governor of New York is a constitutional office in the executive branch of the Government of the State of New York. It is the second highest-ranking official in state government. The lieutenant governor is elected on a ticket with the governor for a four-year term. Official duties dictated to the lieutenant governor under the present New York Constitution are to serve as president of the state senate, serve as acting governor in the absence of the governor from the state or the disability of the governor, or to become governor in the event of the governor's death, resignation or removal from office via impeachment. Additional statutory duties of the lieutenant governor are to serve on the New York Court for the Trial of Impeachments, the State Defense Council, and on the board of trustees of the College of Environmental Science and Forestry. The lieutenant governor of New York is the highest-paid lieutenant governor in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Byron Brown</span> American politician (born 1958)

Byron William Brown II is an American politician who is the current mayor of Buffalo, New York. He has served as Buffalo's 62nd mayor since January 2006, the City's first African-American mayor and longest serving mayor. He previously served Western New York as a member of the New York State Senate and Buffalo Common Council. He is the first African-American politician elected to the New York State Senate to represent a district outside New York City and the first member of any minority race to represent a majority white New York State Senate district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Paterson</span> 55th Governor of New York from 2008 to 2010

David Alexander Paterson is an American politician and attorney who served as the 55th governor of New York, succeeding Eliot Spitzer and serving out nearly three years of Spitzer's term from March 2008 to December 2010. A member of the Democratic Party, he is the first legally blind person to be sworn in as governor of a U.S. state, and is the first African American governor of New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basil A. Paterson</span> Former American politician in New York (1926–2014)

Basil Alexander Paterson was an American labor lawyer and politician. He served in the New York State Senate from 1966 to 1971 and as secretary of state of New York under Governor Hugh Carey from 1979 to 1983. In 1970, Paterson was the Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor of New York on the Arthur Goldberg ticket. Paterson's son David served as governor from 2008 to 2010.

Leecia Roberta Eve is an attorney from New York with experience in federal government, state government, and the private sector who currently works as a lobbyist for telecommunications giant Verizon. Born in Buffalo, Eve was a candidate for Lieutenant Governor of New York during the 2006 election. After working for U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton, Eve served as a senior advisor during Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign. From 2011 to 2013, she was Deputy Secretary for Economic Development in the Executive Chamber of New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo. She was appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in July 2017. Eve ran for Attorney General of New York in 2018, but was defeated in the Democratic primary.

Arthur O. Eve is a retired American politician who served as a Democratic member of the New York State Assembly (1967–2002) and Deputy Speaker of the Assembly (1979–2002) representing districts in Buffalo, New York. He was the first Dominican-American elected to public office in the United States, and the first African American to win a Buffalo mayoral Democratic primary but was defeated in the following mayoral election.

Nicholas A. Spano is a Republican politician from New York.

Herman Daniel “Denny” Farrell Jr. was an American politician from New York. He was a Democratic member of the New York State Assembly representing the Manhattan neighborhoods of West Harlem, Inwood and Washington Heights from 1975 to 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Perkins (politician)</span> American politician

Bill Perkins is an American politician from the state of New York. A Democrat, he served in the New York City Council from the 9th district from 2017 to 2021. The district includes portions of Harlem in Manhattan. Perkins formerly represented the same seat from 1998 to 2005, and was a member of the New York State Senate for the 30th District from 2007 to 2017.

John Raymond Jones was the last Grand Sachem of Tammany Hall, a New York City Councilman for Harlem, a district leader, ran the Carver Democratic Club, and was Adam Clayton Powell's campaign manager in 1958, opposing Tammany Hall, and Carmine DeSapio.

The Gang of Four, also known as the Harlem Clubhouse, was an African-American political coalition from Harlem whose members later ascended to top political posts. It is named after the Gang of Four of China. J. Raymond Jones was influential in helping these men obtain power.

The Eliot Spitzer political surveillance controversy broke out on July 23, 2007 when New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office admonished Governor of New York Eliot Spitzer's administration for ordering the State Police to create special records of Senate majority leader Joseph Bruno's whereabouts when he traveled with police escorts in New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral history of David Paterson</span>

David Paterson has served in several elected positions, including the New York State Senate and as Lieutenant Governor of New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 United States Senate special election in New York</span> Special election for United States senator from New York held in 2010

The 2010 United States Senate special election in New York took place on November 2, 2010, concurrently with other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Governor David Paterson had appointed Kirsten Gillibrand to serve as United States Senator from New York until the 2010 special election, replacing former Senator Hillary Clinton, who resigned to serve as Secretary of State in the Barack Obama administration. The winner of the special election was to complete the term ending in January 2013. The special election took place concurrently with the regular election for the Senate seat held by Charles Schumer and the 2010 New York gubernatorial election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eliot Spitzer</span> 54th Governor of New York from 2007 to 2008

Eliot Laurence Spitzer is an American politician and attorney. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the 54th governor of New York from 2007 until his resignation in 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 New York State Senate leadership crisis</span>

The 2009 New York State Senate leadership crisis was a political dispute that prevented the New York State Senate from functioning for a month.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Lynch Jr.</span>

William "Bill" Lynch Jr. was an American politician and political consultant, advising politicians from the Democratic Party. He was a prominent political figure in New York politics, especially within the African-American community. In 1999, Lynch founded the political consulting firm Bill Lynch Associates, LLC (BLA), where he served as chairman from its founding until his death.

References

  1. "Ex-Prosecutor Is Nominated For a Manhattan Senate Seat". The New York Times . 1985-09-16. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  2. Chan, Sewell (2008-03-11). "David A. Paterson, Next in Line". The New York Times . Retrieved 2008-03-18.
  3. 1 2 Salmon, Stephanie. "10 Things You Didn't Know About David Paterson". U.S. News & World Report . Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  4. "New York City Senate Districts (1992)" (PDF). The New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-04-11. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
  5. "New York City Senate Districts (2002)" (PDF). The New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-04-11. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
  6. Hicks, Jonathan P. (1993-09-15). "The 1993 Primary: Public Advocate; Green Scores Big Victory Over His Five Opponents". The New York Times . Retrieved 2003-03-13.
  7. Cooper, Michael (2006-01-25). "For a Politician in a Position to Gain Power, a Stunning Move". The New York Times . Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  8. 1 2 3 Hicks, Jonathan P. (2002-11-22). "New Minority Leader Has the Old Guard's Backing". The New York Times . Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  9. YouTube. YouTube .
  10. Sullivan, John; Danny Hakim (2008-03-12). "Paterson to Ascend to Power in Midst of Storm". The New York Times . Retrieved 2008-03-13.
  11. Pérez-Peña, Richard (2002-11-20). "Democrats Assert Unity In Choosing Black Leader". The New York Times . Retrieved 2008-03-16.
  12. Smith, Ben (2006-02-12). "Spitzer's Mate David Paterson Is Mystery Man". The New York Observer . Archived from the original on 2008-03-12. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  13. Confessore, Nicholas; Jeremy W. Peters (2008-03-13). "A Bipartisan Prediction of Harmony in Albany". The New York Times . Retrieved 2008-03-13.
  14. "Croton Plant Still Stirs Anger, Questions about Water Projects". 17 June 2015.
  15. Lovett, Kenneth (2008-03-12). "Paterson's '06 Misfire". New York Post . Archived from the original on 2008-03-13. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  16. Hakim, Danny; Rashbaum, William K. "David A. Paterson". Times Topics. The New York Times . Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  17. Mansfield, Melissa (2008-03-12). "Paterson expected to stick to Spitzer's agenda". Newsday . Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  18. Katz, Celeste (2007-09-16). "Democratic senator hopefuls race to replace Hillary Clinton". Daily News . Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  19. Hakim, Danny (2007-10-04). "Wishing and Hoping for Clinton's Seat". The New York Times . Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  20. Amira, Dan (2008-03-11). "Spitzer's Sex Scandal Sullies Superdelegate Status". New York . Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  21. 1 2 Barry, Dan (1999-03-19). "Daily Protesters in Handcuffs Keep Focus on Diallo Killing". The New York Times . Retrieved 2008-03-18.