James Ferlo (May 19, 1951 – May 15, 2022) was an American politician who was a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate representing the 38th Senatorial District from 2003-2015. His district consisted of parts of Allegheny, Westmoreland, and

Armstrong Armstrong may refer to: Places * Armstrong Creek (disambiguation), various places Antarctica * Armstrong Reef, Biscoe Islands Argentina * Armstrong, Santa Fe Australia * Armstrong, Victoria Canada * Armstrong, British Columbia * Armstrong ...

counties.James Ferlo Papers, 1963-2002, AIS 1998.02
Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh He did not run for reelection in 2014.

Background and career

Ferlo was born to Italian immigrant parents in the small upstate town of

Rome, New York Rome is a city in Oneida County, New York, United States, located in the central part of the state. The population was 32,127 at the 2020 census. Rome is one of two principal cities in the Utica–Rome Metropolitan Statistical Area, which li ...

, and credited part of his legislative effectiveness as being one of ten siblings. Ferlo was a

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

community activist in Pittsburgh before being elected to

Pittsburgh City Council The Pittsburgh City Council serves as the legislative body in the City of Pittsburgh. It consists of nine members. City council members are chosen by plurality elections in each of nine districts. The city operates under a mayor-council syst ...

in 1987. He served on council for 15 years until his election to the State Senate in 2002. Ferlo served as president of City Council from 1994 to 1997. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, Ferlo was elected to the state senate in 2002, receiving 65 percent of the vote to 35 percent for

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 ...

candidate Ted Tomson. In 2003, the political website

PoliticsPA PoliticsPA.com is a website centered on the politics of Pennsylvania. Content The website reports on political and campaign news in Pennsylvania, from the state legislature up to federal races. The editors write occasional features, like the we ...

named him to "The Best of the Freshman Class" list. Ferlo was overwhelmingly re-elected in 2006 in his heavily Democratic district. In that race, Ferlo received 84 percent of the vote, while his opponent Joe Murphy of the Constitution Party received 16 percent. Following his 2014 retirement from the State Senate, Ferlo served two three-year terms on the board of directors of the ACLU of Pennsylvania. He also involved himself in a variety of community activities.

Personal life

Ferlo

came out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...

as gay on September 23, 2014, thus becoming the Pennsylvania Senate's first openly gay legislator. Ferlo died on May 15, 2022, aged 70.

References

External links

Pennsylvania State Senate - Jim Ferlo
official PA Senate website
Project Vote Smart - Senator Jim Ferlo (PA)
profile * ''Follow the Money'' – Jim Ferlo *
200620042002
campaign contributions
James Ferlo Papers, 1963-2002, AIS 1998.02
Archives Service Center, University of Pittsburgh {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferlo, Jim 1951 births 2022 deaths 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American LGBT people 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American LGBT people American people of Italian descent Gay politicians LGBT state legislators in Pennsylvania Democratic Party Pennsylvania state senators Pittsburgh City Council members Place of death missing Politicians from Pittsburgh Politicians from Rome, New York