Robert Alan Straniere (born March 28, 1941) is a Republican politician from New York City. He represented a district in

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 ...

in 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 1981 until 2004, serving as the Assistant Minority Leader from 1995 until 2004. In the 2008 Congressional election, he was a candidate for the House of Representatives in

New York's 13th congressional district 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 ...

, a seat being vacated by

Vito Fossella Vito John Fossella Jr. (born March 9, 1965) is an American politician serving as the Staten Island Borough President since 2022. A member of the Republican Party, Fossella previously represented the state's 13th congressional district in the U.S ...

. Straniere received the endorsement of the Staten Island Republican Party. On September 9, 2008, Staniere defeated Dr. Jamshad I. Wyne in the Republican

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

to become the Republican candidate. He opposed the winner of the Democratic primary,

Michael E. McMahon Michael E. McMahon (born September 12, 1957) is an American politician and attorney serving as the District Attorney for Richmond County, which is coextensive with Staten Island. A member of the Democratic Party, McMahon is a former U.S. Represen ...

, a 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 ...

. McMahon won the election on November 4. Born 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 raised in Staten Island, Straniere received his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from

Wagner College Wagner College is a private liberal arts college in Staten Island, New York City. Founded in 1883 and with an enrollment of approximately 2,200 students, Wagner is known for its academic program, The Wagner Plan for the Practical Liberal Arts. It ...

in 1962, and attended New York University Law School, where he was awarded a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

degree in 1965. He joined the

New York Army National Guard The New York Army National Guard is a component of the New York National Guard and the Army National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the United States Army's available combat forces and approximat ...

in 1966, and returned to NYU Law School, where he was awarded a

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

degree in 1969. He then served as

Counsel A counsel or a counsellor at law is a person who gives advice and deals with various issues, particularly in legal matters. It is a title often used interchangeably with the title of ''lawyer''. The word ''counsel'' can also mean advice given ...

New York State Senator 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 compo ...

John J. Marchi John Joseph Marchi (May 20, 1921 – April 25, 2009) was an American attorney and jurist who represented Staten Island in the New York State Senate for 50 years. Marchi (pronounced MAR-key), a Republican, retired on December 31, 2006, from the ...

from 1970 until 1980, when he ran for the

seat which was being vacated by

Guy Molinari Gaetano Victor Molinari (November 23, 1928July 25, 2018) was an American lawyer and Republican politician from New York city. He represented Staten Island in the United States House of Representatives for four terms (1981–1989) and then ...

. He won the election and served in the Assembly until 2004, sitting in the 184th, 185th, 186th, 187th, 188th, 189th, 190th, 191st, 192nd, 193rd, 194th and

195th New York State Legislature The 195th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 8, 2003, to December 31, 2004, during the ninth and tenth years of George Pataki's governorship A governor is an ...

s. For the last 10 years he was Assistant Minority Leader. In 2004, he ran for re-nomination, but was defeated by

Vincent M. Ignizio Vincent M. Ignizio (born October 2, 1974) is an American politician and former member and Minority Leader of the New York City Council representing Staten Island's 51st district. Before being elected to the City Council, he was a member of the N ...

in the Republican primary. After his re-election defeat, Straniere moved to Manhattan and in April 2007 he opened up a restaurant at the corner of

Chambers Chambers may refer to: Places Canada: *Chambers Township, Ontario United States: *Chambers County, Alabama * Chambers, Arizona, an unincorporated community in Apache County * Chambers, Nebraska * Chambers, West Virginia * Chambers Township, Hol ...

and

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

Streets in Tribeca called the ''New York City Hot Dog Company''."After Albany Defeat, Straniere's Going to the Dogs"
New York Sun, April 16, 2007 Straniere remains involved in New York City politics as an analyst and radio commentator.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Straniere, Robert A. 1941 births Living people Republican Party members of the New York State Assembly People from Manhattan American restaurateurs Wagner College alumni New York University School of Law alumni Politicians from Staten Island