David Paterson at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival

Prior to becoming Governor of New York, David Paterson served in the New York State Senate, eventually becoming Senate minority leader.

State senate

In 1985, Paterson resigned his position as assistant district attorney to join the then city clerk David Dinkins' successful campaign to win the Democratic nomination for Manhattan Borough President. That summer, on August 6, state senator Leon Bogues died, and Paterson sought and obtained the Democratic party nomination for the seat. In mid-September, a meeting of 648 Democratic committee members on the first ballot gave Paterson 58% of the vote. That October, Paterson won the hotly contested special State Senate election.[1][2] At the time, the 29th Senate district covered the Manhattan neighborhoods of Harlem, Manhattan Valley and the Upper West Side, the same district that Paterson's father had represented.[3] Upon his election, Paterson became the youngest State Senator in Albany. He won the seat again in 1986 for a full term representing the 29th District in the New York State Senate, and served as senator until assuming the office of Lieutenant Governor on January 1, 2007. (The districts changed for the 2002 election.)[4][5]

In 1993 Paterson ran citywide in the Democratic primary for the office of New York City Public Advocate, the second highest elected office in the city. He lost to Mark Green, who received 45 percent of the primary vote; Paterson was second in the five-candidate race, with 19 percent of the vote.[6] Paterson did not have the support in the 1993 effort from senior Harlem Democratic leaders, David Dinkins, Percy Sutton, Charles Rangel or his father, Basil Paterson.[7] In 1997, Paterson also campaigned for Manhattan borough president; when he withdrew from the race, he worked for the election of C. Virginia Fields, who won the office.[8]

On 9/11, Paterson was at his Harlem apartment when the Twin Towers were hit. [9]

A member of the Democratic National Committee and a board member of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, Paterson addressed the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston as well as the Democratic mayors at the U.S. Conference of Mayors.[3]

Senate minority leader

Paterson was elected by the Democratic caucus of the Senate as Minority Leader on November 20, 2002, becoming both the first non-white state legislative leader and the highest-ranking African American elected official in the history of New York State, unseating the incumbent Minority Leader, Martin Connor. Since the Great Depression, only one party caucus leader has been unseated in either legislature; Paterson succeeded without the help of a powerful patron, and owed no debts to other Democratic party leaders. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver sided with Connor, as did Brooklyn party leader Assemblyman Clarence Norman Jr.[10][11] Paterson's ouster of Connor had been an alliance of Manhattan senators against the Brooklynite Connor's more suburban-friendly politics.[12] His conciliatory withdrawal from the Manhattan borough president race, and his 2001 effort organizing Harlem elected officials to support the mayoral candidacy of Fernando Ferrer earned Paterson support in the Harlem and Manhattan Democratic leadership. "When I went to them and told them I was running for minority leader," Mr. Paterson said of his Harlem elders, "they were not only supportive, they were enthusiastic."[8] David Dinkins telephoned wavering Democratic senators, lobbying them to support Paterson in the contest. Paterson indicated his long-term goals were to increase the number of Democratic Senators and, eventually, win a majority of the Senate.[8]

Paterson became known for his consensus-building style coupled with sharp political skills.[13] Charles J. O'Byrne, who was his Chief of Staff and worked for him during his time as Governor, joined his staff while working as Minority Leader. Paterson worked with then DEP Commissioner Christopher O. Ward to ensure that New York City's third water tunnel received state approval and funding. [14] Paterson later appointed Ward to be Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

In 2006, Paterson sponsored a controversial bill to limit the use of deadly force by the police, but later changed that position. He also supported non-citizen voting in New York local elections. According to The New York Post, he "chalked up a heavily liberal record."[15]

Describing Paterson's tenure in the senate, The New York Times cited his "wit, flurries of reform proposals and unusual bursts of candor."[16] On March 12, 2008, Melissa Mansfield wrote in Newsday that "many good government groups expect that efforts to clean up Albany would continue" under his governorship, based on his reform record in the legislature, but a legislative opponent, Sen. Dean Skelos, asserted that Paterson "carries an urban agenda against fairness to the suburban communities."[17]

Previously, Paterson had been mentioned as a possible successor to Senator Hillary Clinton should Clinton win the Democratic nomination and also the 2008 U.S. presidential election.[18][19] Paterson was a 2008 Democratic party national convention superdelegate and endorsed Clinton.[20]

Arrest for civil disobedience

On March 18, 1999, Paterson, his father Basil, former Manhattan Borough President Percy Sutton, Kweisi Mfume, then-president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and 55 others were arrested by members of the New York Police Department for disorderly conduct.[21] Paterson and the others were taking part in acts of civil disobedience to protest the shooting death of Amadou Diallo, an unarmed African immigrant who was shot by four white police officers. The demonstration was organized by Rev. Al Sharpton. The acts of civil disobedience at Police Plaza were directed at then New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who ridiculed the protesters.[21]

Works

Further reading

  • John C. Walker,The Harlem Fox: J. Raymond Jones at Tammany 1920:1970, New York: State University New York Press, 1989.
  • David N. Dinkins, A Mayor's Life: Governing New York's Gorgeous Mosaic, PublicAffairs Books, 2013
  • Rangel, Charles B.; Wynter, Leon (2007). And I Haven't Had a Bad Day Since: From the Streets of Harlem to the Halls of Congress. New York:
  • Baker Motley, Constance Equal Justice Under The Law: An Autobiography, New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1998.
  • Howell, Ron Boss of Black Brooklyn: The Life and Times of Bertram L. Baker Fordham University Press Bronx, New York 2018

References

  1. ↑ "Ex-Prosecutor Is Nominated For a Manhattan Senate Seat". The New York Times. 1985-09-16. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  2. ↑ Chan, Sewell (2008-03-11). "David A. Paterson, Next in Line". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-18.
  3. 1 2 Salmon, Stephanie. "10 Things You Didn't Know About David Paterson". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  4. ↑ "New York City Senate Districts (1992)" (PDF). The New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-04-11. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
  5. ↑ "New York City Senate Districts (2002)" (PDF). The New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-04-11. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
  6. ↑ Hicks, Jonathan P. (1993-09-15). "The 1993 Primary: Public Advocate; Green Scores Big Victory Over His Five Opponents". The New York Times. Retrieved 2003-03-13.
  7. ↑ Cooper, Michael (2006-01-25). "For a Politician in a Position to Gain Power, a Stunning Move". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  8. 1 2 3 Hicks, Jonathan P. (2002-11-22). "New Minority Leader Has the Old Guard's Backing". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
  9. ↑ YouTube. YouTube.
  10. ↑ Sullivan, John; Danny Hakim (2008-03-12). "Paterson to Ascend to Power in Midst of Storm". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-13.
  11. ↑ Pérez-Peña, Richard (2002-11-20). "Democrats Assert Unity In Choosing Black Leader". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-16.
  12. ↑ Smith, Ben (2006-02-12). "Spitzer's Mate David Paterson Is Mystery Man". The New York Observer. Archived from the original on 2008-03-12. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
  13. ↑ Confessore, Nicholas; Jeremy W. Peters (2008-03-13). "A Bipartisan Prediction of Harmony in Albany". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-13.
  14. ↑ "Croton Plant Still Stirs Anger, Questions about Water Projects". 17 June 2015.
  15. ↑ Lovett, Kenneth (2008-03-12). "Paterson's '06 Misfire". New York Post. Archived from the original on 2008-03-13. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  16. ↑ Hakim, Danny; Rashbaum, William K. "David A. Paterson". Times Topics. The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  17. ↑ Mansfield, Melissa (2008-03-12). "Paterson expected to stick to Spitzer's agenda". Newsday. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  18. ↑ Katz, Celeste (2007-09-16). "Democratic senator hopefuls race to replace Hillary Clinton". Daily News. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  19. ↑ Hakim, Danny (2007-10-04). "Wishing and Hoping for Clinton's Seat". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  20. ↑ Amira, Dan (2008-03-11). "Spitzer's Sex Scandal Sullies Superdelegate Status". New York. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  21. 1 2 Barry, Dan (1999-03-19). "Daily Protesters in Handcuffs Keep Focus on Diallo Killing". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-18.
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