The 183rd New York State Legislature, consisting of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate. Partisan com ...

and the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

, met from January 3, 1979, to December 31, 1980, during the fifth and sixth years of

Hugh Carey Hugh Leo Carey (April 11, 1919 – August 7, 2011) was an American politician and attorney. He was a seven-term U.S. representative from 1961 to 1974 and the 51st governor of New York from 1975 to 1982. He was a member of the Democratic Party. ...

governorship A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, in Albany.

Background

Under the provisions of the

New York Constitution The Constitution of the State of New York establishes the structure of the government of the State of New York, and enumerates the basic rights of the citizens of New York. Like most state constitutions in the United States, New York's constituti ...

of 1938 and the U.S. Supreme Court decision to follow the

One man, one vote "One man, one vote", or "one person, one vote", expresses the principle that individuals should have equal representation in voting. This slogan is used by advocates of political equality to refer to such electoral reforms as universal suffrage, ...

rule, re-apportioned in 1971, and amended in 1974, by the Legislature, 60 Senators and 150 assemblymen were elected in single-seat districts for two-year terms. Senate and Assembly districts consisted of approximately the same number of inhabitants, the area being apportioned contiguously without restrictions regarding county boundaries. At this time there were two major political parties: the Republican Party and the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

. The

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

, the Right to Life Party, the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

, the

Libertarian Party Active parties by country Defunct parties by country Organizations associated with Libertarian parties See also * Liberal parties by country * List of libertarian organizations * Lists of political parties Lists of political part ...

, the Socialist Workers Party, the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...

and the Labor Party also nominated tickets.

Elections

The New York state election, 1978, was held on November 7. Governor

was re-elected, and Secretary of State

Mario Cuomo Mario Matthew Cuomo (, ; June 15, 1932 – January 1, 2015) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 52nd governor of New York for three terms, from 1983 to 1994. A member of the Democratic Party, Cuomo previously served as t ...

was elected Lieutenant Governor, both Democrats. The elections to the other two statewide elective offices resulted in a Republican Comptroller and a Democratic Attorney General. The approximate party strength at this election, as expressed by the vote for Governor, was: Democrats 2,306,000; Republicans 1,913,000; Conservatives 243,000; Right to Life 130,000; Liberals 123,000; Libertarians 19,000; Socialist Workers 13,000; Communists 11,000; and Labor 9,000. Seven of the ten women members of the previous legislature were elected again: State Senators Olga A. Méndez (Dem.), of

East Harlem East Harlem, also known as Spanish Harlem or and historically known as Italian Harlem, is a neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, New York City, roughly encompassing the area north of the Upper East Side and bounded by 96th Street to the south, F ...

, and

Linda Winikow Linda Winikow (May 9, 1940 – August 24, 2008) was an American politician from New York. Winikow pleaded guilty to grand larceny, commercial bribe receiving and making illegal campaign contributions. Early life On May 9, 1940, Winikow was bo ...

(Dem.), of Spring Valley; and Assemblywomen

Elizabeth Connelly Elizabeth Ann "Betty" Connelly (June 19, 1928 – May 25, 2006) was a politician from Staten Island, New York who represented the North Shore community from 1973 to 2000. She was the first woman to win elective office to any district encompassing ...

(Dem.), of

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

;

Pinny Cooke Audre "Pinny" Cooke (December 26, 1923 – August 1, 2004) was an American social activist and politician from New York. Life She was born Audre Trupin on December 26, 1923, in Syracuse, New York. There she attended Nottingham High School. She gr ...

(Rep.), of

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

;

Estella B. Diggs Estella B. Diggs (April 21, 1916 – April 18, 2013) was an American businesswoman, writer and politician from New York. Life She was born on April 21, 1916, in St. Louis, Missouri. She attended Pace College, City College of New York and New Yo ...

(Dem.), of

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

; and Gerdi E. Lipschutz (Dem.), of

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

, were re-elected; and Assemblywoman

Mary B. Goodhue Mary Elizabeth Goodhue ('' née'' Brier; July 24, 1921 – March 24, 2004) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. Early life Mary was born on July 24, 1921, in London, England to American parents. She was a daughter of Ernest Brie ...

(Rep.), a lawyer of

Mount Kisco Mount Kisco is a village and town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The town of Mount Kisco is coterminous with the village. The population was 10,959 at the 2020 United States census over 10,877 at the 2010 census. It serves as a ...

, was elected to the State Senate.

Carol Berman Carol Berman (born September 21, 1923) is a New York Democratic Party politician from Lawrence, in Nassau County, New York, United States, who served in the New York State Senate from 1979 to 1984. Berman first achieved attention for her eff ...

(Dem.), of

Lawrence Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

, was also elected to the State Senate.

Rhoda S. Jacobs Rhoda S. Jacobs (born September 29, 1936) is an American politician from New York. A Democrat, she was until 2014 a member of the New York State Assembly from the 42nd Assembly District in Brooklyn, which primarily includes the neighborhoods of ...

(Dem.), of

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

;

Joan B. Hague Joan B. Hague is an American politician from New York, United States. Life She was born Joan Spillane Barber in Glens Falls, Warren County, New York. She graduated from Tusculum College in 1951, and later attended for some time Fairleigh Dickinson ...

(Rep.), of

Glens Falls Glens Falls is a city in Warren County, New York, United States and is the central city of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,700 at the 2010 census. The name was given by Colonel Johannes Glen, the falls refe ...

; May W. Newburger (Dem.), of

Great Neck Great Neck is a region on Long Island, New York, that covers a peninsula on the North Shore and includes nine villages, among them Great Neck, Great Neck Estates, Great Neck Plaza, Kings Point, and Russell Gardens, and a number of unincor ...

;

Toni Rettaliata Antonia Patricia Rettaliata (née Bifulco; October 20, 1944 – April 8, 2020) was an American politician from New York. Life She was born on October 20, 1944, in Huntington, Suffolk County, New York, the daughter of Pasquale Bifulco and Mary ( ...

(Rep.), of Huntington; and

Florence M. Sullivan Florence M. Sullivan (January 20, 1930 – June 21, 2020) was an American lawyer and politician from New York who served in the New York State Assembly from the 50th district from 1979 to 1983. Life She was born Florence Grady on January 20, 1930 ...

(Rep.), a lawyer of

, were also elected to the Assembly. Thus the 183rd Legislature had 13 women members, surpassing the previous record of 11 in the

181st New York State Legislature The 181st New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 8, 1975, to August 5, 1976, during the first and second years of Hugh Carey's governorship in Albany. Background ...

(1976). The New York state election, 1979, was held on November 6. No statewide elective offices were up for election, and there were no vacancies in the Legislature.

Sessions

The Legislature met for the first regular session (the 202nd) at the State Capitol in Albany on January 3, 1979; and recessed indefinitely in the early morning of June 17.

Stanley Fink Stanley Fink (February 6, 1936 – March 4, 1997) was an American lawyer and politician. Life Fink was born on February 6, 1936, in Brooklyn, New York City. He attended New Utrecht High School. He graduated from Brooklyn College in 1956, and fr ...

(Dem.) was elected

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

Warren M. Anderson Warren Mattice Anderson (October 16, 1915 – June 1, 2007) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. He was Temporary President and Majority Leader of the New York State Senate from 1973 to 1988. Life He was born on October 16, 191 ...

(Rep.) was re-elected Temporary President of the State Senate. The Legislature was again in session on and off in October and November 1979, to consider legislation concerning energy matters. The Legislature met for the second regular session (the 203rd) at the State Capitol in Albany on January 9, 1980; and recessed indefinitely on June 15. The Legislature met for a special session at the State Capitol in Albany from November 19 to 23. This session was called by Governor Carey to consider legislation on banking, the State budget, and housing in New York City.''A SPECIAL MEETING OF THE LEGISLATURE IS CALLED BY CAREY''
in ''The New York Times'' on November 19, 1980 (subscription required)

State Senate

Senators

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Christopher J. Mega, Mary B. Goodhue, Charles D. Cook and John B. Daly changed from the Assembly to the Senate. Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."

Employees

* Secretary: Roger C. Thompson

State Assembly

Assemblymen

The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature. Note: For brevity, the chairmanships omit the words "...the Committee on (the)..."

Employees

* Clerk:

Catherine A. Carey Catherine Ann Carey (born 1945) is an American lawyer and politician from New York. Life She was born in 1945, in Lackawanna, Erie County, New York, the daughter of William James Carey and Mary Clare (Kuebler) Carey. She graduated with a B.A. f ...

Notes

Sources

''New York State Information Handbook''
prepared for the U.S. Dept of Energy (December 31, 1980) {{NYLegislatures 183 1979 in New York (state) 1980 in New York (state) 1979 U.S. legislative sessions 1980 U.S. legislative sessions