Alex Blanco (born 1972) is an American politician who served as mayor of Passaic, New Jersey. 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 was the first elected and second serving

Dominican-American Dominican Americans ( es, domínico-americanos, ) are Americans who trace their ancestry to the Dominican Republic. The word may refer to someone born in the United States of Dominican descent or to someone who has migrated to the United Stat ...

mayor in the United States. being convicted of federal bribery charges in 2016.

Biography

Alex Blanco was born in the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

in 1972. In 1984, when Alex was 12 years old, he emigrated from

La Vega Province La Vega () is a province of the Dominican Republic. Until 1992 it included what is now Monseñor Nouel province. History The first settlement made by Christopher Columbus in the area was on December 8, 1494. Its initial economic development wa ...

to Passaic, New Jersey, with his mother, stepfather, and two siblings. Two of his siblings have recently moved with him as well. Blanco's family struggled financially and received foodstamps for a time during Alex's childhood. He was paid by the Passaic School Board for taking the

SAT The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and scoring have changed several times; originally called the Scholastic Aptitude Test, it was later called the Schol ...

's. Blanco graduated Kean University and

New York College of Podiatric Medicine The New York College of Podiatric Medicine (NYCPM) is a private podiatric medical college in Manhattan, New York. It is the oldest and second largest podiatric medical school in the United States. History Founded in 1911, NYCPM was the first ...

. Blanco was first elected in November 2008 in a special election to complete the unexpired term of former Mayor Samuel Rivera, who resigned after pleading guilty to attempted extortion. Blanco received around twenty eight percent of the 13,769 votes. In April 2009, he announced he was running for a full-term, and was endorsed by Senator Bob Menendez. Blanco won a full four-year term in the May election, defeating city supervisor Vincent Capuana. Blanco was sworn in July 1, 2009, when he began serving his four-year term. Blanco was described as the "classic American success story" by

Gary Schaer Gary Steven Schaer (born September 11, 1951) is an American Democratic Party politician who serves in the New Jersey General Assembly where he represents the 36th Legislative District. He took office on January 10, 2006, and remains on the P ...

, whom Blanco replaced as acting mayor in the 2008 special election.

Bribery case and resignation

In November 2016, Blanco pled guilty to a single federal count of bribery, agreeing to resign immediately. Blanco admitted in court to accepting $110,000 in bribes from two unnamed housing developers in exchange for directing more than $200,000 in

HUD Hud or HUD may refer to: Entertainment * ''Hud'' (1963 film), a 1963 film starring Paul Newman * ''Hud'' (1986 film), a 1986 Norwegian film * ''HUD'' (TV program), or ''Heads Up Daily'', a Canadian e-sports television program Places * Hud, Fa ...

funds to a failed low-income housing development. He faced up to 10 years in federal prison upon sentencing, scheduled for February 2017. He was succeeded by Passaic County Freeholder Hector Lora, in an appointment made by the City Council. Blanco is the second consecutive elected mayor of Passaic, and the third in two decades (following Joseph Lipari and Sammy Rivera), to be convicted of or plead guilty to official misconduct charges.

References

American politicians of Dominican Republic descent Hispanic and Latino American mayors in New Jersey New Jersey politicians convicted of crimes Living people American podiatrists Mayors of Passaic, New Jersey 1972 births Hispanic and Latino American people in New Jersey politics {{NewJersey-mayor-stub