José Marco Serrano (born June 19, 1972) is a member of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

from the 29th District, representing

Mott Haven Mott Haven is a primarily residential neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of the Bronx. It is generally bounded by East 149th Street to the north, the Bruckner Expressway to the east and south, and the Harlem ...

Melrose Melrose may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Melrose, Scottish Borders, a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland ** Melrose Abbey, ruined monastery ** Melrose RFC, rugby club Australia * Melrose, Queensland, a locality in the South Burnett R ...

, Highbridge, Morris Heights,

Spanish Harlem East Harlem, also known as Spanish Harlem, or , is a neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City, north of the Upper East Side and bounded by 96th Street to the south, Fifth Avenue to the west, and the East and Harlem Rivers to the east ...

, Yorkville,

Roosevelt Island Roosevelt Island is an island in New York City's East River, within the Borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan. It lies between Manhattan Island to the west, and the borough of Queens, on Long Island, to the east. It is about long, wit ...

and part of the

Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper We ...

. He is the son of former

U.S. Congressman The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

José Serrano. A lifelong South Bronx resident, Serrano was elected to the New York State Senate in November 2004. He defeated Republican Olga Mendez, a 26-year incumbent in the district. Since 2019, he has served as the Chair of the Majority Conference, the third highest-ranking member of the Senate. He was the subject of Congressional campaign speculation when his father announced his retirement from representing NY-15, but chose not to run.

Background

Serrano was born and raised in the

South Bronx The South Bronx is an area of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The area comprises neighborhoods in the southern part of the Bronx, such as Concourse, Bronx, Concourse, Mott Haven, Bronx, Mott Haven, Melrose, B ...

, where his father,

José E. Serrano José Enrique Serrano (born October 24, 1943) is an American politician who was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1990 until his retirement in 2021. Serrano, a Democrat from New York, represented a district that is one of the ...

, was a member of 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 Ass ...

, and later a member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

. Serrano is a graduate of

Manhattan College Manhattan University (previously Manhattan College) is a private, Catholic university in New York City. Originally established in 1853 by the De La Salle Christian Brothers (Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools) as an academy fo ...

. Prior to becoming involved in politics, Serrano worked with the

New York Shakespeare Festival Shakespeare in the Park (or Free Shakespeare in the Park) is a theatrical program that stages productions of Shakespearean plays at the Delacorte Theater, an open-air theater in New York City's Central Park. The theater and the productions are ...

. In 2001, Serrano was elected to the 17th district of the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City in the United States. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The council serves as a check against the mayor in a mayor-council government mod ...

, representing

, Longwood, and Hunt's Point. He was re-elected in 2003.

New York Senate

In 2004, longtime state Senator Olga A. Méndez switched parties to become a Republican. With the district overwhelmingly Democratic, Serrano was asked to run against her. According to the ''New York Times'', which endorsed him, Serrano promised "to pursue unfinished and ignored business in the capital, including legislating an end to the Rockefeller drug laws." He would garner more than 80% of the vote in his victory over Mendez. Since his initial election to the Senate, Serrano has never faced serious opposition for general re-election. In September 2007, he was named one of ''

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

s "40 under 40" for being a young influential member of New York City politics. In 2019, Serrano was named Chairman of Committee on Cultural Affairs, Tourism, Parks and Recreation, a post he also held from 2009 to 2010. In 2020, he won reelection against Republican challenger Jose A. Colon with 82% of the vote.

Personal life

Serrano is married with two children.

References

External links

New York State Senate: Jose M. SerranoSerrano For State Senate websiteSenator Serrano's Blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Serrano, Jose M. 1972 births Living people New York City Council members Hispanic and Latino American New York City Council members Democratic Party New York (state) state senators Politicians from the Bronx Puerto Rican people in New York (state) politics American politicians of Puerto Rican descent Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in New York (state) Manhattan College alumni 21st-century members of the New York State Legislature

Background

New York Senate

Personal life

See also

References

External links