Joseph C. Vignola, Sr. (born August 11, 1949) is a Democratic politician from

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Political career

City Controller

In November 1982, Philadelphia City Controller Thomas Leonard resigned his post and announced his intention to run for

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

(he would ultimately lose the Democratic nomination to

Wilson Goode Woodrow Wilson Goode Sr. (born August 19, 1938) is a former List of mayors of Philadelphia, Mayor of Philadelphia and the first African Americans, African American to hold that office. He served from 1984 to 1992, a period which included the c ...

). Vignola ran to succeed him, and was elected in November 1983.

Senate candidacy

Vignola resigned the office of City Controller in December 1987, and subsequently announced his intention to challenge incumbent

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

John Heinz Henry John Heinz III (October 23, 1938 – April 4, 1991) was an American businessman and Republican politician from Pennsylvania. Heinz represented the Pittsburgh suburbs in the United States House of Representatives from 1971 to 1977 and ...

in the 1988 election. Heinz, who was seeking his third term in the Senate, had amassed considerable political clout, having most recently served as Chairman of the

National Republican Senatorial Committee The National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) is the Republican Hill committee for the United States Senate, working to elect Republicans to that body. The NRSC was founded in 1916 as the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee. It was reorgan ...

. Vignola's candidacy struggled to gain traction, and he was ultimately defeated by over 30 percentage points, or roughly 1.5 million votes, while only carrying one county across the state–Philadelphia.

City Council tenure and return to private life

In 1991, Vignola announced his intention to challenge incumbent Democratic Councilman

James Tayoun James Joseph ("Jimmy") Tayoun (March 27, 1930 – November 1, 2017) was a Democratic member of Philadelphia City Council and of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He served non-consecutive terms representing District 1 on Philadelphia C ...

for his First District on the

Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council, the legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consists of ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large. The council president is elected by the members from among their number. Each ...

. Tayoun eventually announced his intention to retire rather than seek re-election amid a federal investigation into alleged tax fraud. His candidacy was supported by his cousin, Democratic power broker and former

State Senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

Buddy Cianfrani Henry J. "Buddy" Cianfrani (March 19, 1923 – July 3, 2002) was the Pennsylvania state senator for the first district. Prior to holding elective office, he served in the U.S. Army during World War II where he earned the Purple Heart and t ...

, and Vignola eventually scored a narrow victory former Republican

State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

Connie McHugh Connie Black McHugh (December 8, 1938 – September 20, 1997) was a former Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Asse ...

in the fall general election. Vignola resigned his council seat in 1995, after Mayor

Ed Rendell Edward Gene Rendell (; born January 5, 1944) is an American lawyer, prosecutor, politician, and author. He served as the 45th Governor of Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2011, as chair of the national Democratic Party, and as the 96th Mayor of Philade ...

appointed him executive director of the Pennsylvania Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority (PICA). He served in a variety of appointed positions during Rendell's gubernatorial tenure, and has subsequently returned to private business.

Personal life

In 2010, Vignola's 21-year-old son, Joseph Jr., admitted to beating an 18-year-old woman he met on the website

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, and slashing her throat in a Philadelphia hotel room. He was originally sentenced to two-to-four years in prison, but later had his sentence extended to nine to 26 years when he was discovered to have lied to the court about alleged incidents of hazing during his time at the

Valley Forge Military Academy Valley Forge Military Academy and College (VFMAC) is a private boarding school (grades 7–12) and military junior college in Wayne, Pennsylvania. It follows in the traditional military school format with army traditions. Though military in ...

References

External links

Profile at the Colmen Group
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vignola, Joe 1949 births Living people City controllers of Philadelphia Philadelphia City Council members Pennsylvania Democrats