Ivan C. Lafayette (July 28, 1930 – October 4, 2016) was an American politician who represented the 34th District in the
New York State Assembly, which comprises portions of
Jackson Heights,
Corona
Corona (from the Latin for 'crown') most commonly refers to:
* Stellar corona, the outer atmosphere of the Sun or another star
* Corona (beer), a Mexican beer
* Corona, informal term for the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, which causes the COVID-19 di ...
, and
Elmhurst. He served as Deputy Speaker of the Assembly from 2006 to 2008.
Life and career
Originally from
Monticello
Monticello ( ) was the primary plantation of Founding Father Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, who began designing Monticello after inheriting land from his father at age 26. Located just outside Charlottesville, V ...
,
Sullivan County, New York
Sullivan County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 78,624. The county seat is Monticello. The county's name honors Major General John Sullivan, who was labeled at the time as a hero in the A ...
, Lafayette attended schools in
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 ...
and graduated from high school in 1947. He received his B.A. from
Brooklyn College in 1955 and moved to Jackson Heights, Queens, where he and his family have lived since 1956. He served in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
from December 1952 to December 1954.
Lafayette was a member of the
New York State Assembly from 1977 to 2008, sitting in the
182nd,
183rd,
184th,
185th,
186th,
187th,
188th,
189th 189th may refer to:
*189th (Canadien-Français) Battalion, CEF, a unit in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War
*189th Airlift Squadron, a unit of the Idaho Air National Guard that flies the C-130 Hercules
*189th Airlift Wing, ...
,
190th,
191st,
192nd,
193rd,
194th,
195th,
196th, and
197th New York State Legislature
The 197th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 3, 2007, to December 31, 2008, during Eliot Spitzer's and the early part of David Paterson's governorship, in Albany ...
s. He served in a variety of capacities both in government and within the Democratic Party, including as a former District Leader and New York State Democratic Committeeman. During his tenure in the New York State Assembly, he served in various leadership positions such as Speaker Pro Tempore and as the Chair of the Insurance Committee, where he spearheaded consumer protection legislation. He also served as the Chair of the Queens Delegation for many years, prioritizing and advocating for borough-wide needs. He did not seek re-election in 2008. Lafayette died on October 4, 2016, at the age of 86. A street co-naming proposal is underway by Councilmember Daniel Dromm to rededicate the corner of his former Assembly District office, at the northwest corner of 92nd Street and 34th Avenue in Jackson Heights, to be called "NYS Assemblyman Ivan Lafayette Way".
References
External links
NY Dems BiographyGotham Gazette's Eye On Albany: New York State Assembly: District 34Nolan, Lafayette Named To Top Assembly Jobs
1930 births
2016 deaths
Deputy Speakers of the New York State Assembly
Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly
Brooklyn College alumni
People from Monticello, New York
Military personnel from New York (state)
United States Army soldiers
People from Jackson Heights, Queens
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