James Tedisco
Encyclopedia
James Nicholas "Jim" Tedisco (born July 15, 1950) is an American politician. He is the Republican
New York State assemblyman
from the 110th District, and was the Assembly's Minority Leader
from November 2005 until April 2009. He has served in the Assembly since 1983. He was the Republican nominee in a special election for the 20th US Congressional District
to fill the seat vacated by Kirsten Gillibrand
, following Gillibrand's appointment to the United States Senate
; he conceded the race on April 24, 2009.
in 1968, and then received his B.A. in Psychology from Union College
. While at Union, he played varsity basketball for three years where he set 15 scoring and assist records, and left as Union's all-time leading scorer with 1,632 points. Tedisco earned multiple athletic awards during his college career, and was inducted into the Union Athletics Hall of Fame in 2002. In 1997, he was given the Silver Anniversary Award
from the NCAA. The award is granted 25 years after graduation, and is based on a combination of academic achievement and being a prominent athlete while in college, and career and professional achievement after graduation.
He went on to get a graduate degree in Special Education from the College of Saint Rose. From 1973 to 1982, Tedisco was a guidance counselor at Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons High School in Schenectady, and was also the varsity basketball coach and athletic director. Later, he was a special education teacher at Bethlehem Central High School
in Delmar
, a suburb of Albany
. In 1977, at age 27, he became the youngest person to be elected to the Schenectady City Council
, and was reelected four years later.
In 1982, Assemblyman Clark Wemple retired from the State Assembly, leaving an opening in the district. Tedisco won a four-way race in Republican primary, and then won the general election. Tedisco was then chosen as the Ranking Minority Member on the Committee on Children and Families and Chairman of the Assembly Minority Task Force on Missing Children. As a result of his work on missing children, he authored Missing Children: A psychological approach to understanding the causes and consequences of stranger and non-stranger abduction of children, which was published in 1996.
Due to redistricting, Tedisco represented the 107th District from 1983 to 1993, the 103rd District from 1993 to 2003, and has represented the 110th District since 2003. The 110th District consists of portions of Schenectady
, Saratoga Springs
and other communities in upstate New York.
Tedisco was a frequent critic of former Governor
Eliot Spitzer
. Tedisco drew attention in 2007 due to his vocal opposition to Spitzer's plan to allow illegal immigrants to obtain driver licenses in New York, an issue Spitzer retreated on. In October 2007, Tedisco charged that Spitzer had cut funding for health and education programs in the Schenectady area in retaliation for Tedisco's opposition to the Spitzer driver license plan, and accused the Governor of "dirty tricks" and "bullying". A portion of the funding at issue was later restored. When Spitzer's involvement with a prostitution ring surfaced in March 2008, Tedisco called for the Governor's resignation, and threatened impeachment if Spitzer did not resign. Spitzer announced his resignation the next day, March 12, 2008.
Tedisco ran uncontested in the 2008 general election and won the 2010 general election with 64 percent of the vote.
announced that he had selected Representative Kirsten Gillibrand
to fill the United States Senate seat vacated by Hillary Clinton, Tedisco stated his intention to run for Congress to replace Gillibrand in New York's 20th Congressional District. Though not a resident of the district, Tedisco became its Republican nominee on January 27, 2009, and ran against Democrat Scott Murphy
. The initial count from the election had Murphy leading by 59 votes, out of over 155,000 cast on March 31, 2009. This tally did not include any of the 10,000 requested absentee ballots, which needed only to have been postmarked by that date and could have been returned as late as April 7 (domestically) or April 13 (internationally). Eventually, about 7,000 absentee ballots were received; the vote count as of April 24 had Murphy ahead by 399 votes. On April 24, Tedisco conceded the election to Murphy.
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...
New York State assemblyman
New 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...
from the 110th District, and was the Assembly's Minority Leader
Minority leader
In U.S. politics, the minority leader is the floor leader of the second largest caucus in a legislative body. Given the two-party nature of the U.S. system, the minority leader is almost inevitably either a Republican or a Democrat, with their counterpart being of the opposite party. The position...
from November 2005 until April 2009. He has served in the Assembly since 1983. He was the Republican nominee in a special election for the 20th US Congressional District
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...
to fill the seat vacated by 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...
, following Gillibrand's appointment 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...
; he conceded the race on April 24, 2009.
Early life
Jim Tedisco graduated from Bishop Gibbons High SchoolNotre Dame-Bishop Gibbons High School
Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons High School is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Schenectady, New York. It is located within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany.-Background:...
in 1968, and then received his B.A. in Psychology from Union College
Union College
Union College is a private, non-denominational liberal arts college located in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. In the 19th century, it became the "Mother of Fraternities", as...
. While at Union, he played varsity basketball for three years where he set 15 scoring and assist records, and left as Union's all-time leading scorer with 1,632 points. Tedisco earned multiple athletic awards during his college career, and was inducted into the Union Athletics Hall of Fame in 2002. In 1997, he was given the Silver Anniversary Award
Silver Anniversary Awards (NCAA)
The Silver Anniversary Awards are given each year by the American National Collegiate Athletic Association to recognize six distinguished former student-athletes on their 25th anniversary as college graduates. The Silver Anniversary Awards were first given in 1973, when five distinguished former...
from the NCAA. The award is granted 25 years after graduation, and is based on a combination of academic achievement and being a prominent athlete while in college, and career and professional achievement after graduation.
He went on to get a graduate degree in Special Education from the College of Saint Rose. From 1973 to 1982, Tedisco was a guidance counselor at Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons High School in Schenectady, and was also the varsity basketball coach and athletic director. Later, he was a special education teacher at Bethlehem Central High School
Bethlehem Central High School
Bethlehem Central High School is a high school in Delmar, New York, just south of Albany. Located at 700 Delaware Avenue, the school serves students in grades 9-12 from the towns of Bethlehem and New Scotland. The school was ranked 1048 on Newsweek's 2010 " Top US High Schools."The high school was...
in Delmar
Delmar, New York
Delmar is a hamlet in the town of Bethlehem, Albany County, New York. A census-designated place has been established since 1980 by the US Bureau of Census for tabulating the population of what the census has defined as the boundaries of the urbanized area in and around Delmar. The population was...
, a suburb of Albany
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
. In 1977, at age 27, he became the youngest person to be elected to the Schenectady City Council
City council
A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...
, and was reelected four years later.
New York Assembly
Due to redistricting, Tedisco represented the 107th District from 1983 to 1993, the 103rd District from 1993 to 2003, and has represented the 110th District since 2003. The 110th District consists of portions of Schenectady
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135...
, Saratoga Springs
Saratoga Springs, New York
Saratoga Springs, also known as simply Saratoga, is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 26,586 at the 2010 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area. While the word "Saratoga" is known to be a corruption of a Native American name, ...
and other communities in upstate New York.
Tedisco was a frequent critic of former Governor
Governor of New York
The Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...
Eliot Spitzer
Eliot Spitzer
Eliot Laurence Spitzer is an American lawyer, former Democratic Party politician, and political commentator. He was the co-host of In the Arena, a talk-show and punditry forum broadcast on CNN until CNN cancelled his show in July of 2011...
. Tedisco drew attention in 2007 due to his vocal opposition to Spitzer's plan to allow illegal immigrants to obtain driver licenses in New York, an issue Spitzer retreated on. In October 2007, Tedisco charged that Spitzer had cut funding for health and education programs in the Schenectady area in retaliation for Tedisco's opposition to the Spitzer driver license plan, and accused the Governor of "dirty tricks" and "bullying". A portion of the funding at issue was later restored. When Spitzer's involvement with a prostitution ring surfaced in March 2008, Tedisco called for the Governor's resignation, and threatened impeachment if Spitzer did not resign. Spitzer announced his resignation the next day, March 12, 2008.
Tedisco ran uncontested in the 2008 general election and won the 2010 general election with 64 percent of the vote.
2009 special election
On January 23, 2009, after Governor David PatersonDavid Paterson
David Alexander Paterson is an American politician who served as the 55th Governor of New York, from 2008 to 2010. During his tenure he was the first governor of New York of African American heritage and also the second legally blind governor of any U.S. state after Bob C. Riley, who was Acting...
announced that he had selected Representative 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 fill the United States Senate seat vacated by Hillary Clinton, Tedisco stated his intention to run for Congress to replace Gillibrand in New York's 20th Congressional District. Though not a resident of the district, Tedisco became its Republican nominee on January 27, 2009, and ran against Democrat Scott Murphy
Scott Murphy (politician)
Matthew Scott Murphy is an entrepreneur and the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2009 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party...
. The initial count from the election had Murphy leading by 59 votes, out of over 155,000 cast on March 31, 2009. This tally did not include any of the 10,000 requested absentee ballots, which needed only to have been postmarked by that date and could have been returned as late as April 7 (domestically) or April 13 (internationally). Eventually, about 7,000 absentee ballots were received; the vote count as of April 24 had Murphy ahead by 399 votes. On April 24, Tedisco conceded the election to Murphy.
External links
- New York State Assembly – Members New York State Assembly Official Member Website
- Jim Tedisco for Congress Jim Tedisco's campaign site
- Tedisco's Take Jim Tedisco's Blog