Elizabeth O'C. Little
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth O'Connor "Betty" Little (born 1940) is a New York State Senator. A member of the Republican Party, she was first elected in 2002. She serves in the 45th Senate District, which includes all or part of Clinton
, Essex
, Franklin
, Hamilton
, Warren
and Washington
Counties. Little was born in Glens Falls
, and currently resides in Queensbury
.
After the appointment of Kirsten Gillibrand
to the United States Senate
in January 2009, Little expressed interest in running for U.S. Congress in New York's 20th congressional district
and announced her intention to seek the Republican
nomination for the special election
for the seat. The nomination went instead to Assembly Minority Leader Jim Tedisco.
for seven years where she was a member of numerous committees and task forces. Senator Little first entered public service as a member and later Chair of the Town of Queensbury
Recreation Commission. In 1986 she was elected to serve as an At-Large Supervisor to the Warren County
Board of Supervisors for the Town of Queensbury, where she served on numerous boards and committees and as County Budget Officer in 1990 and 1991.
Senator Little is a graduate of St. Mary's Academy
and The College of Saint Rose
with a degree in Elementary Education. A former teacher and real estate agent, Little is the mother of six (Elizabeth, David, Robert, Thomas, Carolyn, and Luke) and the grandmother of ten.
, and NARAL Pro-Choice America
has considered her voting record on reproductive issues to be anti-choice most years. In 2000, Little received a 0% rating from NARAL. Little also opposes embryonic stem cell research, emergency contraception
, and sex education
.
of New York State is considered strong.
where several accidents in recent years highlighted the public hazard of non-existent communications technology.
to successfully redevelop the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base
, to pursue the creation of affordable broadband
access in her rural district to expand access to alternative energy choices and to promote new job creation in pharmaceuticals, transportation equipment and aerospace.
where her counterpart, Teresa Sayward
, also a Republican, voted in favor of the bill. Little has said she supports civil union
s.
in 2004 and a 0% from New Yorkers Against Gun Violence in 2002. Her district includes a large portion of the Adirondack mountains where hunting is both a traditional activity and a major economic activity.
Clinton County, New York
Clinton County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 82,128. Its name is in honor of the first Governor of New York as a state, George Clinton. Its county seat is Plattsburgh.-History:...
, Essex
Essex County, New York
Essex County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 39,370. Its name is from the English county of Essex. Its county seat is Elizabethtown...
, Franklin
Franklin County, New York
Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 51,599. It is named in honor of American Founding Father Benjamin Franklin...
, Hamilton
Hamilton County, New York
Hamilton County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. It is named after Alexander Hamilton, the only member of the New York State delegation who signed the United States Constitution in 1787 and later the first United States Secretary of the Treasury. Its county seat is Lake Pleasant...
, Warren
Warren County, New York
Warren County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the Glens Falls, New York, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 65,707. It is named in honor of General Joseph Warren, an American Revolutionary War hero of the Battle of Bunker Hill...
and Washington
Washington County, New York
Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the Glens Falls, New York, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 63,216. It was named for the Revolutionary War general George Washington...
Counties. Little was born in Glens Falls
Glens Falls, New York
Glens Falls is a city in Warren County, New York, United States. Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,700 at the 2010 census...
, and currently resides in Queensbury
Queensbury, New York
Queensbury is a town in and the county seat of Warren County, New York, United States. The town is located in the southeastern part of the county. The population was 25,441 at the 2000 census. The town is named in honor of Queen Charlotte, the consort of George III of Great Britain and Ireland. It...
.
After the appointment of Kirsten Gillibrand
Kirsten Gillibrand
Kirsten Elizabeth Rutnik Gillibrand is an attorney and the junior United States Senator from the state of New York and a member of the Democratic Party...
to the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
in January 2009, Little expressed interest in running for U.S. Congress in New York's 20th congressional district
New York's 20th congressional district
The 20th Congressional District of New York is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in eastern New York. It includes all or parts of Columbia, Dutchess, Delaware, Essex, Greene, Otsego, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Warren, and Washington counties. It includes the...
and announced her intention to seek the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
nomination for the special election
New York's 20th congressional district special election, 2009
The 2009 special election for the 20th congressional district of New York was held on March 31, 2009 to fill the vacancy created in January 2009 when the district's representative, Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand, was appointed US senator from New York, replacing Hillary Clinton, who had been...
for the seat. The nomination went instead to Assembly Minority Leader Jim Tedisco.
History
Prior to her election to the State Senate in November 2002, she served in the New York State AssemblyNew York State Assembly
The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The Assembly is composed of 150 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 128,652...
for seven years where she was a member of numerous committees and task forces. Senator Little first entered public service as a member and later Chair of the Town of Queensbury
Queensbury, New York
Queensbury is a town in and the county seat of Warren County, New York, United States. The town is located in the southeastern part of the county. The population was 25,441 at the 2000 census. The town is named in honor of Queen Charlotte, the consort of George III of Great Britain and Ireland. It...
Recreation Commission. In 1986 she was elected to serve as an At-Large Supervisor to the Warren County
Warren County, New York
Warren County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the Glens Falls, New York, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 65,707. It is named in honor of General Joseph Warren, an American Revolutionary War hero of the Battle of Bunker Hill...
Board of Supervisors for the Town of Queensbury, where she served on numerous boards and committees and as County Budget Officer in 1990 and 1991.
Senator Little is a graduate of St. Mary's Academy
St. Mary's Academy
St. Mary's Academy may refer to:Canada:* St. Mary's Academy Pakistan* St Mary's Academy Philippines:* Saint Mary's Academy * St. Mary's Academy - PasayUnited States:...
and The College of Saint Rose
The College of Saint Rose
The College of Saint Rose is a private, independent, coeducational college in Albany, New York, founded in 1920 by the Sisters of Saint Joseph. The College enrolls a total of approximately 5,000 students ....
with a degree in Elementary Education. A former teacher and real estate agent, Little is the mother of six (Elizabeth, David, Robert, Thomas, Carolyn, and Luke) and the grandmother of ten.
Abortion
In 2004, Little was endorsed by the New York State Right to Life CommitteeNew York State Right to Life Party
The New York State Right to Life Party was founded to oppose the legalization of abortion in New York in 1970. The party first made the state ballot in the 1978 gubernatorial election, where its candidate Mary Jane Tobin won 130,000 votes...
, and NARAL Pro-Choice America
NARAL Pro-Choice America
NARAL Pro-Choice America , formerly the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws, then National Abortion Rights Action League, and later National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League, is an organization in the United States that engages in political action to oppose...
has considered her voting record on reproductive issues to be anti-choice most years. In 2000, Little received a 0% rating from NARAL. Little also opposes embryonic stem cell research, emergency contraception
Emergency contraception
Emergency contraception , or emergency postcoital contraception, refers to birth control measures that, if taken after sexual intercourse, may prevent pregnancy.Forms of EC include:...
, and sex education
Sex education
Sex education refers to formal programs of instruction on a wide range of issues relating to human sexuality, including human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, reproductive health, emotional relations, reproductive rights and responsibilities, abstinence, contraception, and...
.
Property Rights
Little's record in defense of property rights in the Adirondack regionAdirondack Mountains
The Adirondack Mountains are a mountain range located in the northeastern part of New York, that runs through Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Lewis, Saint Lawrence, Saratoga, Warren, and Washington counties....
of New York State is considered strong.
Environment
Little has been a strong advocate for "balance" in the pursuit of environmental and economic objectives in her district, which includes a large portion of the highly regulated Adirondack Park. She has consistently sought a stronger role for local governments in planning and development decisions, and criticized the most radical environmentalists for opposing almost any form of economic development. Her advocacy for balance has resulted in some notable successes, including the expansion of cell phone access in previously unserved areas of the Adirondacks such as a 64 mile "black out zone" on I-87Interstate 87
Interstate 87 is a Interstate Highway located entirely within New York State in the United States of America. I-87 is the longest intrastate Interstate highway in the Interstate Highway System. Its southern end is at the Bronx approaches of the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge in New York City...
where several accidents in recent years highlighted the public hazard of non-existent communications technology.
Economic Development
Little has been a conservative Senator, opposing higher spending and taxes in New York State and generally supporting measures designed to facilitate economic development and small business success She has been a leader in efforts to foster economic connections with neighboring CanadaCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
to successfully redevelop the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base
Plattsburgh Air Force Base
Plattsburgh Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base covering 3,447 acres in the extreme northeast corner of New York, 20 miles south of the Canadian border...
, to pursue the creation of affordable broadband
Broadband
The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times...
access in her rural district to expand access to alternative energy choices and to promote new job creation in pharmaceuticals, transportation equipment and aerospace.
Gay Marriage
Little voted "No" on the Gay Marriage Senate Bill in December 2009 and the bill received no Republican support, unlike in the AssemblyNew York State Assembly
The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The Assembly is composed of 150 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 128,652...
where her counterpart, Teresa Sayward
Teresa Sayward
Teresa R. Sayward is a member of the New York State Assembly for Willsboro , first elected in 2002. She is a Republican.-Career:...
, also a Republican, voted in favor of the bill. Little has said she supports civil union
Civil union
A civil union, also referred to as a civil partnership, is a legally recognized form of partnership similar to marriage. Beginning with Denmark in 1989, civil unions under one name or another have been established by law in many developed countries in order to provide same-sex couples rights,...
s.
Gun ownership rights
Little also generally opposes new forms of gun control, receiving an A from the NRANational Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
in 2004 and a 0% from New Yorkers Against Gun Violence in 2002. Her district includes a large portion of the Adirondack mountains where hunting is both a traditional activity and a major economic activity.