Gabriel Oliver Koppell (born December 15, 1940) is an American lawyer and politician from

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 ...

. 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 ...

, he is a former member 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 ...

and the former New York Attorney General.

Biography

Koppell was born on December 15, 1940, in

. His parents, refugees from

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, moved to

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 ...

when Oliver was two years old. Koppell attended Bronx elementary schools, the Bronx High School of Science,

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

and

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

, from which he graduated

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

.Official Biography
/ref> While at Harvard College, he founded

Let's Go Travel Guides ''Let's Go'' is a travel guide series researched, written, edited, and run entirely by students at Harvard University. ''Let's Go'' was founded in 1960 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts. History The first Let's Go guide was a 25 ...

. He is

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

. Koppell's first marriage ended in divorce. He is now married to Lorraine Coyle Koppell, an attorney who narrowly lost a race for 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 ...

in 2000 to

Guy Velella Guy John Velella (September 25, 1944 – January 27, 2011) was an American Republican politician serving as a New York State Senator from the Bronx. A political leader, state assemblyman, and state senator for over 30 years, Velella was indict ...

. He has three children, all of whom were raised in the Bronx and attended Bronx public schools, and five grandchildren. Koppell is active in the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club. He has been a resident of Fieldston in

New York State Assembly

Koppell was a member 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 ...

from 1970 to 1994. On March 3, 1970, Koppell was elected as an Independent to the

, to fill the vacancy caused by the appointment of

Benjamin Altman Benjamin Altman (July 12, 1840 – October 7, 1913) was a New York City department store owner and art collector who is best known today for his large art collection, which he donated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Life and career Benjami ...

as New York City Commissioner of Rent and Housing Maintenance. While in the Assembly, he served as Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and passed the New York

bottle bill There are ten U.S. states with container deposit legislation, popularly called "bottle bills" after the Oregon Bottle Bill, the first such legislation passed. Container deposit legislation mandates a refundable deposit on certain types of rec ...

. Koppell was re-elected several times as a Democrat, and remained in the Assembly until 1993, sitting in the 178th, 179th, 180th, 181st, 182nd, 183rd, 184th, 185th, 186th, 187th, 188th, 189th and

190th New York State Legislature The 190th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 6, 1993, to December 31, 1994, during the eleventh and twelfth years of Mario Cuomo's governorship, in Albany. Back ...

s In 1981, Koppell ran for Bronx Borough President, but was defeated in the Democratic primary by the incumbent,

Stanley Simon Stanley Simon (born March 3, 1930) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. From 1979 to 1987, he served as the 10th Borough President of The Bronx. Previously, he served for six years on the New York City Council. In 1987, he w ...

New York Attorney General

On December 16, 1993, Koppell was elected by the

New York State Legislature The New York State Legislature consists of the two houses that act as the state legislature of the U.S. state of New York: The New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly. The Constitution of New York does not designate an official ...

to fill the unexpired term of New York Attorney General Robert Abrams. As attorney general, Koppell successfully brought a lawsuit to allow drivers under the age of 25 to obtain

rental car Renting, also known as hiring or letting, is an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property owned by another. A gross lease is when the tenant pays a flat rental amount and the landlord pays for al ...

s in the State of New York. Mr. Koppell initiated dozens of public interest lawsuits, collected over $100,000,000 for the state treasury, and negotiated the largest environmental settlement in the history of New York. In 1994, Koppell sought a full term as attorney general, but lost to Judge Karen Burstein in the Democratic Primary. He finished second, ahead of Brooklyn District Attorney

Charles "Joe" Hynes Charles Joseph Hynes (born Charles Aiken Hynes; May 28, 1935 – January 29, 2019) was an American lawyer and Democratic politician from New York who served as Kings County District Attorney from 1990 to 2013. Early life and education Hynes ...

and prosecutor

Eliot Spitzer Eliot Laurence Spitzer (born June 10, 1959) is an American politician and attorney. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he was the 54th governor of New York from 2007 until his resignation in 2008. Spitzer was b ...

. In 1998, he again sought the Democratic nomination for attorney general. He finished third in the primary, behind Spitzer, who won, and State Senator Catherine Abate. Koppell finished ahead of Charles Davis, a former staffer for former Governor Mario Cuomo.

New York City Council

He served as a member of the

from

District 11 District 11 can refer to: *District 11 (Ho Chi Minh city), Vietnam *District 11 (Zürich), Switzerland * District 11, an electoral district of Malta *Colorado Springs School District 11, in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States *District 11 (Hu ...

, covering the neighborhoods of Riverdale, Kingsbridge, Woodlawn Heights,

Van Cortlandt Village Van Cortlandt Village is a subsection of the Kingsbridge neighborhood in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 8. Named after Van Cortlandt Park, it is bordered by the Major Deegan Expressway to ...

, Norwood, and Bedford Park. He was elected to the Council in 2001, and defeated Ari Hoffnung by a 3 to 1 margin in 2005. On September 15, 2009, Koppell defeated challenger, Tony Perez Casino winning 65% of the vote. Due to term limits, Koppell left the City Council on December 31, 2013.

2014 State Senate Run

In 2014, Koppell ran against incumbent State Senator

Jeffrey D. Klein Jeffrey David Klein (born July 10, 1960) is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party. He represented the New York State Senate's 34th District, serving parts of Bronx and Westchester Counties from 2005 to 2018. Klein also s ...

in the Democratic Party primary, and was defeated on a 60 to 40 margin. Koppell ran on the basis of disbanding the Independent Democratic Conference (a Democratic group of senators who caucused with Republicans), led by Klein."Koppell challenges Klein for senate seat," Riverdale Press. May 5, 201

/ref>

References

External links

Searchlight 2002-District 11
* ttps://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60B16FE385C0C7B8EDDAC0894D0494D81&n=Top%2fReference%2fTimes%20Topics%2fPeople%2fK%2fKoppell%2c%20G%2e%20Oliver Primary Ahead in Attorney General Racebr>Koppell challenges Klein for senate seat
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koppell, Oliver Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly New York State Attorneys General New York City Council members Jewish American state legislators in New York (state) Harvard College alumni Harvard Law School alumni 1940 births Living people Politicians from the Bronx The Bronx High School of Science alumni 21st-century American Jews