The New York State Democratic Committee is the affiliate of 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 ...
in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
. Its headquarters are in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, and it has an office in
Albany.
Home
New York State Democratic Committee. Retrieved on May 13, 2010. It is currently the dominant party in the state, controlling the majority of New York's U.S. House
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
seats, both U.S. Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
seats, both houses of the state legislature, and the 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 ...
.
History
The three Democratic presidents who were from New York are Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
(32nd) who was the governor of New York from 1929 to 1932, Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...
(22nd and 24th) who was the governor from 1883 to 1885, and Martin Van Buren
Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party (Uni ...
(eighth) who was the governor in 1829. Van Buren is also the only Democratic vice president who was from New York.
In the early 20th century when New York was without a Democratic governor, county leaders controlled nominations and campaign finances. President John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...
got involved in the early 1960s, funneling federal patronage through New York City mayor Robert F. Wagner Jr.
Robert Ferdinand Wagner II (April 20, 1910 – February 12, 1991) was an American politician who served three terms as the mayor of New York City from 1954 through 1965. When running for his third term, he broke with the Tammany Hall leadership ...
to the detriment of state chair Michael H. Prendergast.
In 1974, Democrats benefited from Republican problems stemming from the Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's continual ...
, winning control of 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 ...
and electing a governor, 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. ...
. Democrats have controlled the Assembly ever since. Republicans controlled the State Senate for some years after that, but Democrats gained a decisive advantage in the chamber in 2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
and 2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
.
In August 2021, Jay Jacobs of the committee was the one to tell Andrew Cuomo
Andrew Mark Cuomo ( ; ; born December 6, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected to the same position that his father, Mario Cuo ...
to resign as New York governor over reports of sexual harassment, then supported Cuomo's successor Kathy Hochul
Kathleen Hochul ( ; née Courtney; born August 27, 1958) is an American politician serving as the 57th governor of New York since August 24, 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, she is New York's first female governor, as well as the firs ...
. As of 2022, the NY Democratic Party was described as having "dominance" in New York politics, as it largely controlled political positions in Albany, and Republicans had not won statewide since 2002. As of August 2022 the chair of the committee was Jay S. Jacobs. He was reelected chairman in September 2022. The Executive Committee is chaired by former New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn
Christine Callaghan Quinn (born July 25, 1966) is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, she formerly served as the Speaker of the New York City Council. The third person to hold this office, she was the first female and first ...
. The Executive Director is Alexander Wang.
Current elected officials
The following is a list of elected statewide and federal Democratic officeholders:
Members of Congress
Democrats hold 19 of New York's 27 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
and both of New York's seats in the U.S. Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
.
U.S. Senate
Democrats have controlled both of New York's seats in the U.S. Senate since 1998:
File:Chuck Schumer official photo (cropped 2).jpg, Senior U.S. Senator
(Majority Leader
In U.S. politics (as well as in some other countries utilizing the presidential system), the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body. )
File:Kirsten Gillibrand, official photo, 116th Congress (cropped).jpg, Junior U.S. Senator
U.S. House of Representatives
* NY-03
New York's 3rd congressional district is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in the State of New York. It is represented by Democrat Tom Suozzi, who has been in office since 2017. In the 2022 election, Repub ...
: Thomas Suozzi
Thomas Richard Suozzi (; born August 31, 1962) is an American politician, attorney and accountant who served as the U.S. Representative for from 2017 to 2023. His district included part of the North Shore of Long Island.
A member of the Democ ...
* NY-04: Kathleen Rice
Kathleen Maura Rice (born February 15, 1965) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the United States representative for New York's 4th congressional district. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Before serving in Congress, Rice se ...
* NY-05: Gregory Meeks
Gregory Weldon Meeks (born September 25, 1953) is an American lawyer and politician who has been a U.S. representative from New York since 1998. He is a member of the Democratic Party and has chaired the House Committee on Foreign Affairs since ...
* NY-06: Grace Meng
Grace Meng (born October 1, 1975) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 6th congressional district since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, her district is in the New York City borough of ...
* NY-07: Nydia Velázquez
Nydia Margarita Velázquez Serrano (born March 28, 1953) is a politician serving in the United States House of Representatives since 1993. A Democrat from New York, Velázquez chaired the Congressional Hispanic Caucus until January 3, 2011. He ...
* NY-08: Hakeem Jeffries
Hakeem Sekou Jeffries (; born August 4, 1970) is an American politician and attorney and leader-elect of the Democratic caucus in the U.S. House of Representatives. Jeffries has represented New York's 8th congressional district, anchored in so ...
* NY-09: Yvette Clarke
Yvette Diane Clarke (born November 21, 1964) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 9th congressional district since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, she first entered Congress in 2007, representing New ...
* NY-10: Jerry Nadler
Jerrold Lewis Nadler (; born June 13, 1947) is an American lawyer and politician who since 2013 has served as the U.S. representative for , which includes Manhattan's west side and parts of Brooklyn. A member of the Democratic Party, he is in ...
* NY-12: Carolyn Maloney
Carolyn Jane Maloney (née Bosher, February 19, 1946) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2013, and for from 1993 to 2013. The district includes most of Manhattan's East Side, Astoria and Long Island City ...
* NY-13
New York's 13th congressional district is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in New York City, represented by Adriano Espaillat. The district is the smallest congressional district by area in the U.S.
The ...
: Adriano Espaillat
Adriano de Jesús Espaillat Rodríguez (; born September 27, 1954) is a Dominican-American politician. He is the U.S. representative for and the first Dominican American and first formerly undocumented immigrant to ever serve in Congress. He pre ...
* NY-14
New York's 14th congressional district is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives located in New York City, represented by Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
The district includes the eastern part of The Bronx ...
: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (; ; born October 13, 1989), also known by her initials AOC, is an American politician and activist. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district since 2019, as a member of th ...
* NY-15: Ritchie Torres
Ritchie John Torres (born March 12, 1988) is an American politician from New York. A member of the Democratic Party, Torres is the U.S. representative for New York's 15th congressional district. The district covers most of the South Bronx. It ...
* NY-16: Jamaal Bowman
Jamaal Anthony Bowman (born April 1, 1976) is an American politician and educator serving as the U.S. representative for since 2021. The district covers much of the north Bronx, as well as the southern half of Westchester County, including Mou ...
* NY-17
New York's 17th congressional district is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives located in Southern New York. It includes all of Rockland County and portions of central and northwestern Westchester County, incl ...
: Mondaire Jones
Mondaire L. Jones (born May 18, 1987) is an American lawyer and politician who was the U.S. representative for from 2021 to 2023. The district includes most of central and northwestern Westchester County and all of Rockland County. A member of ...
* NY-18
The 18th congressional district of New York is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives that contains the northern suburbs and exurbs of New York City. It is currently represented by Democrat Sean Patrick Maloney. ...
: Sean Patrick Maloney
Sean Patrick Maloney (born July 30, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative from from 2013 to 2023. The district includes Newburgh (city), New York, Newburgh, Beacon, New York, Beacon, and Poughkeepsie, ...
* NY-19: Pat Ryan
* NY-20: Paul Tonko
Paul David Tonko ( ; born June 18, 1949) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2013. He represented the 21st congressional district from 2009 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Tonko has been called a s ...
* NY-25
The 25th congressional district of New York is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives. It is currently represented by Democrat Joseph Morelle. The district is now located within Monroe County, New York, Monroe C ...
: Joseph Morelle
Joseph D. Morelle ( ; born April 29, 1957) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 25th congressional district since 2018. A Democrat, he was formerly a member of the New York State Assembly representing t ...
* NY-26: Brian Higgins
Brian Michael Higgins (born October 6, 1959) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for , serving since 2005. The district, numbered as the 27th district from 2005 to 2013 but as the 26th since 2013, includes Buffalo and N ...
Statewide officials
NYS Democrats control all four of the elected statewide offices and NYS Cabinet and Departmental Head positions (e.g., New York State Department of Health, NYS Secretary of State, NYS Department of Corrections, New York State Office of People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, NYS Office of General Services, NYS Department of Education) and the Governor's Office.
File:Kathy Hochul, November 2017.jpeg, Governor
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 ...
File:Antonio Delgado, official portrait, 116th Congress (cropped).jpg, Lieutenant Governor
A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
File:Letitia James Interview Feb 2020.png, Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general.
In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
File:Thomas P. DiNapoli crop.jpg, Comptroller
A comptroller (pronounced either the same as ''controller'' or as ) is a management-level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization. A financial comptroller is a senior-level executi ...
State legislative leaders
* Temporary President/Majority Leader of the Senate: Andrea Stewart-Cousins
Andrea Alice Stewart-Cousins (née Stewart; born September 2, 1950) is an American politician and educator from Yonkers, New York. A member of the Democratic Party, Stewart-Cousins has represented District 35 in the New York State Senate since ...
*Deputy Senate Majority Leader: Michael Gianaris
*Vice Senate President Pro Tempore: Neil Breslin
Neil Breslin (born June 9, 1942) is an American attorney and politician serving as a member of the New York State Senate. A Democrat, he represents parts of Albany and Rensselaer counties, including all of the cities of Albany and Rensselae ...
*Senior Senate Assistant Majority Leader: Antonio Delegado
*Chair of Majority Program Development Committee: Tim Kennedy
*Chair of the Majority Conference: Jose Serrano
*Senate Assistant Majority Leader on Conference Operations: Brad Hoylman
Brad Madison Hoylman (born October 27, 1965) is an American Democratic politician. First elected in 2012, Hoylman represents the 27th District in the New York State Senate, covering much of Lower and Midtown Manhattan in New York City. He is C ...
,
*Senate Assistant Majority Leader on House Operations: Gustavo Rivera
*Senate Majority Whip: Kevin Parker,
*Senate Majority Conference Vice-Chair: Toby Ann Stavisky
Toby Ann Stavisky (née Goldhaar, born June 26, 1939) is an American politician serving as a member of the New York State Senate, having held a seat since 1999. She represents the 11th district, which comprises parts of Queens.
Life and caree ...
,
*Senate Majority Conference Secretary: Velmanette Montgomery
Velmanette Montgomery (born December 22, 1942) is an American Democratic Party politician who represented the 25th district of the New York State Senate from 1984 until 2020. The district comprised Fort Greene, Boerum Hill, Red Hook, Bedfor ...
,
*Senate Majority Deputy Whip: Joseph Addabbo,
*Senate Majority Assistant Whip: John Liu
John Chun Yah Liu (born January 8, 1967) is an American politician in New York City. A member of the Democratic Party, he is a member of the New York State Senate for the 11th district in northeast Queens. He previously served as the 43rd New Y ...
*Chair of the Senate Majority Steering Committee: Roxanne Persaud
Roxanne Persaud (born March 1, 1966) is a Guyanese-American politician. She is a Democrat and a member of the New York Senate for the 19th district, which includes portions of Canarsie, East New York, Brownsville, Mill Basin, Sheepshead Bay, ...
*Senate Liaison to the Executive Branch: Todd Kaminsky
*Deputy Senate Majority Leader for State/Federal Relations: Leroy Comrie
Leroy George Comrie Jr. (born August 10, 1958) is an American politician from New York City. He represents District 14 in the New York State Senate, which comprises St. Albans, Cambria Heights, Jamaica, Hollis, Rosedale, Laurelton, Kew Garde ...
*Deputy Senate Majority Leader for Senate/Assembly Relations: Shelley Mayer
Shelley Mayer (born March 6, 1952) is an American politician serving as a Democratic member of the New York State Senate representing the 37th Senate District, which includes portions of Westchester County. Formerly a member of the New York St ...
,
*Assistant Senate Majority Leader on Intergovernmental Affairs: Monica Martinez
Monica R. Martinez (born August 13, 1977) is a Salvadoran-American, civil servant, educator and politician from the state of New York. A Democrat, she is a member of the New York State Senate representing the 4th district. Martinez has also se ...
,
* Speaker of the Assembly: Carl Heastie
Carl Edward Heastie (; born September 25, 1967) is an American politician from New York (state), New York. Heastie has served in the New York State Assembly since January 2001, and was elected Speaker of the New York State Assembly on February 3 ...
*Speaker Pro Tempore of the Assembly: Jeffrion L. Aubry
*House Majority Leader: Crystal Peoples-Stokes
Crystal Davis Peoples-Stokes (born December 22, 1951) is an American politician serving as Majority Leader of the New York State Assembly representing Assembly District 141, which includes the city of Buffalo within Erie County, New York.
Educat ...
Mayoral offices
As of 2019, Democrats control the mayor's offices in nine of New York's ten largest cities:
*New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
(1): Eric Adams
Eric Leroy Adams (born September 1, 1960) is an American politician and retired police captain serving as the 110th mayor of New York City since January 1, 2022.
Adams was an officer in the New York City Transit Police and then the New York C ...
* Buffalo (2): Byron Brown
Byron William Brown II (born September 24, 1958) 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 ...
*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 ...
(3): Malik Evans
Malik D. Evans is an American politician and banker who is the 71st and current Mayor of Rochester, New York. A member of the Democratic Party, Evans previously served on the Rochester City Council as an at-large member and on the Rochester City ...
*Yonkers
Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as enu ...
(4): Mike Spano
Mike Spano (born April 22, 1964) is an American politician who serves as the 42nd mayor of Yonkers, New York. He is a member of the Democratic Party. A former Republican, he served as a member of the New York State Assembly.
Biography
Born ...
* Albany (6): Kathy Sheehan
Katherine M. Sheehan (born December 5, 1963) is an American politician and attorney serving as the 75th List of mayors of Albany, New York, Mayor of Albany, New York. Prior to being elected Mayor, Sheehan served as City Treasurer from 2010 to 201 ...
*New Rochelle
New Rochelle (; older french: La Nouvelle-Rochelle) is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the southeastern portion of the state. In 2020, the city had a population of 79,726, making it the seventh-largest in the state of ...
(7): Noam Bramson
Noam Bramson (born December 13, 1969) is an American politician from the state of New York. He is the mayor of New Rochelle, New York, and has served since being appointed in January 2006 to complete the unexpired term of Mayor Timothy C. Idon ...
*Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...
(8): Shawyn Patterson Howard
*Schenectady
Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...
(9): Gary McCarthy
* Utica (10): Robert M. Palmieri
List of chairpersons
Executive Committee Chair, Christine Quinn
Christine Callaghan Quinn (born July 25, 1966) is an American politician. A member of 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 ...
, she formerly served as the Speaker of the New York City Council
The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five Borough (New York City), boroughs.
The council serves as a check against the Mayor of New York City, mayor in a may ...
. The third person to hold this office, she is the first female and first openly gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...
speaker. "> ">/sup> As City Council speaker, Quinn was New York City's third most powerful public servant, behind the mayor and public advocate. She ran to succeed Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is the majority owner, co-founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P. He was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and was a ca ...
as the city's mayor in the 2013 mayoral election, but she came in third in the Democratic primary.
See also
* Independent Democratic Conference
The Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) was a group of members of the New York State Senate from the Democratic Party who were elected as Democrats but formed a coalition to give the Republicans the majority in the chamber, and attempted to ...
* New York Republican State Committee
The New York Republican State Committee, established in 1855, is the New York State affiliate of the United States Republican Party (GOP). The party has headquarters in Albany, Buffalo, and New York City.
References
Further reading
* Paterson, David ''" Black, Blind, & In Charge: A Story of Visionary Leadership and Overcoming Adversity."''Skyhorse Publishing. New York, New York, 2020
External links
New York State Democratic Committee
New York High School Democrats
New York State College Democrats
{{NewYorkPoliticalParties
Democratic Party (United States) by state
Political parties in New York (state)