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Tom Suozzi
American politician (born 1962) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Thomas Richard Suozzi[1] (/ˈswɒzi/ SWOZ-ee; born August 31, 1962) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 3rd congressional district since 2024 and previously from 2017 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the county executive of Nassau County on Long Island from 2002 to 2009 and served before then as the mayor of Glen Cove for eight years. His district, which is largely suburban, includes northern Nassau County and parts of northeastern Queens.
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In 2006, he ran unsuccessfully against Eliot Spitzer for the Democratic nomination for governor of New York.[2] Suozzi was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2016 and reelected in 2018 and 2020.[3] He retired from Congress to run again for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in 2022, losing to incumbent governor Kathy Hochul.[4]
In October 2023, Suozzi announced that he would run for his old congressional seat in 2024.[5] After Congress expelled George Santos that December, a special election to fill the remainder of the term was scheduled for February 13, 2024. Suozzi was selected as the Democratic nominee,[6] and then won the special election, reclaiming the seat for Democrats.[7]
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Early life and education
Suozzi was born on August 31, 1962, in Glen Cove, New York, the youngest of five siblings.[8] His father, Joseph A. Suozzi, was an attorney and served as Glen Cove's mayor from 1956 to 1960. Originally from Ruvo del Monte, Italy, Joseph immigrated to the United States as a child. Suozzi's mother, Marguerite (née Holmes), was of Irish and English descent and worked as an operating room nurse at Glen Cove Hospital.[9][10][11]
Suozzi graduated from Chaminade High School in 1980 before attending Boston College, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting in 1984.[12] After working as a certified public accountant for two years, he pursued a legal career, and earned a Juris Doctor degree from Fordham University School of Law in 1989.[13][14]
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Professional career
Suozzi began his career as an accountant at Arthur Andersen before attending law school. He then served as a law clerk for Thomas Collier Platt Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Following his clerkship, he worked as a commercial litigator at Shearman & Sterling until 1993.[14][15]
After being in public office, Suozzi worked in the private sector as an attorney of counsel at Harris Beach and as a consultant for Cablevision and Lazard until 2016.[15][16] Later after leaving Congress, he joined Actum as a co-chair in 2023.[17]
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Early political career
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Mayor of Glen Cove
In 1993, Suozzi was elected mayor of Glen Cove, New York. He served as mayor for four terms.[18] His father and his uncle, Vincent Suozzi, were mayors of Glen Cove before him.[19]
As mayor, Suozzi focused on environmental cleanup of commercial and industrial sites, and redeveloping brownfield and superfund sites.[18] In 1994, the Glen Cove incinerator was permanently closed and dismantled.[20] In 1998, the city demolished and redeveloped the defunct Li Tungsten Refinery grounds, a federal superfund site.[21][22]
Nassau County Executive
Suozzi was elected Nassau County Executive in 2001, becoming the first Democrat elected to the position in traditionally Republican Nassau in 30 years.[23] He assumed office amid a fiscal crisis. By 1999, Nassau was on the brink of financial collapse: the county faced a $300 million annual deficit, was billions of dollars in debt, and its credit rating had sunk to one level above junk status.[24] According to The New York Times, he "earned high marks from independent institutions for his signature achievement, the resuscitation of Nassau's finances."[25]
While in office, Suozzi cut spending and reduced borrowing and debt. He also oversaw 11 county bond upgrades over two years, eliminated deficits in Nassau, and accumulated surpluses. In 2005, Governing Magazine named him one of its Public Officials of the Year, calling him "the man who spearheaded Nassau County, New York's, remarkable turnaround from the brink of fiscal disaster."[18][25] According to The New York Times, he garnered praise for social services like his "no wrong door" program, which centralized access to social services.[25]
Suozzi narrowly lost the 2009 county executive election to Ed Mangano. After working in the private sector as an attorney, he announced that he would seek a rematch against Mangano in 2013.[26] He attacked Mangano for "presiding over a decline in the county" while also emphasizing eight years of balanced budgets and reduced crime while he was county executive.[27] In November 2013, Mangano defeated Suozzi by a much wider margin of 59% to 41%.[28]
Gubernatorial campaigns
2006
Suozzi declared his candidacy for governor of New York in the Democratic primary against Eliot Spitzer on February 25, 2006. Few prominent Democrats apart from Nassau County Democratic Party chairman Jay Jacobs supported his bid; most of New York's Democratic legislators and mayors campaigned for Spitzer. One of Suozzi's biggest supporters was Victor Rodriguez, founder of the now disbanded Voter Rights Party. Rodriguez eventually became the lead field organizer for his Albany campaign office. The campaign was funded in part by Home Depot co-founder Kenneth Langone, former NYSE CEO Richard Grasso, vice chairman of the MTA David Mack, and many people on Wall Street whom Spitzer had investigated and prosecuted.[8]
On June 13, 2006, Suozzi spoke before the New York State Conference of Mayors along with Spitzer and John Faso. He received a standing ovation from the crowd of mayors.[29] On July 6, he announced to his followers that he had collected enough petitions to place himself on the primary ballot. During a debate, he said he had presidential aspirations.[30][31] On August 7, after much speculation, he announced that he would not seek an independent line were he to lose the primary.[32]
Spitzer defeated Suozzi in the Democratic primary with 82% of the vote to Suozzi's 18%.[33]
2022
On November 29, 2021, Suozzi announced his candidacy for governor of New York in the 2022 election.[34] He strongly opposed a proposal by Governor Kathy Hochul to permit homeowners to add an accessory dwelling unit (such as an extra apartment and backyard cottage) on lots zoned for single-family housing.[35] The proposal was intended to alleviate New York's housing shortage and make housing more affordable.[36] He said that he supported efforts to tackle housing problems, but that he was against "ending single-family housing".[36][37]
Suozzi placed third in the Democratic primary with 12% of the vote, behind Hochul and Jumaane Williams.[4][38]
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U.S. House of Representatives
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Elections
2016
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In June 2016, Suozzi won a five-way Democratic primary in New York's 3rd congressional district.[39] He was endorsed by The New York Times, Newsday, and The Island Now.[40][41][42] He defeated Republican state senator Jack Martins in the general election on November 8, 53% to 47% and began representing New York's 3rd congressional district in the 115th United States Congress in January 2017.[43]
2018
In June 2018, Suozzi won the Democratic primary unopposed. In the general election, he defeated Republican nominee Dan DeBono 59% to 41%.[44]
2020
In June 2020, Suozzi won a three-way Democratic primary in New York's 3rd congressional district with 66.5% of the votes.[45] In the general election, he defeated Republican nominee George Santos 56% to 43%.[46][47]
2024
Suozzi announced his candidacy for New York's 3rd congressional district in the November 2024 election. After Congress expelled Representative George Santos, Suozzi also declared his candidacy for the special election. He was selected as the Democratic nominee on December 7, 2023,[48] and defeated Republican nominee Mazi Melesa Pilip, a member of the Nassau County Legislature representing the 10th district, in the special election on February 13, 2024 by a margin of 54% to 46%.[7][49][50][a]
As the winner of the special election, Suozzi served out the remainder of Santos's term in the House, which expired in January 2025.[52] According to a December 2023 Politico article, solidarity with Israel in response to the October Hamas-led terrorist attack was a top priority for the district, and both Suozzi and Pilip were "staunch supporters of Israel".[53] Suozzi and Pilip primarily campaigned on the issue of an influx of migrants into the United States.[7]
Suozzi was re-elected to a full term in November 2024, defeating Republican Mike LiPetri in the general election.[54]
Tenure
In Congress, Suozzi prioritized tax policy. He authored legislation to restore the state and local tax (SALT) deduction, which was capped at $10,000 in 2017.[55] He led efforts within the New York congressional delegation to eliminate the cap, though the initiative was unsuccessful.[56][57]
In 2021, the Campaign Legal Center filed an ethics complaint against him, alleging he failed to report nearly 300 stock transactions worth between $3.2 million and $11 million, as required by the STOCK Act.[58][59] During a congressional deposition, Suozzi defended the omissions, stating, “ethics is a big priority for me, but some of the formalities are not necessarily something I make a priority of.”[60] In July 2022, the House Ethics Committee ruled his violations were not “knowing or willful” and dismissed the case.[61]
Suozzi voted in favor of military aid packages for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan in 2024, aligning with most Democrats.[62][63][64] Following Kamala Harris’s defeat in the 2024 presidential election, he criticized the Democratic Party’s stance on transgender participation in girls’ sports and what he described as a “general attack on traditional values,” provoking political backlash.[65]
In 2025, Suozzi wrote an op-ed in The New York Times calling for Democrats to work with the incoming Trump administration and expressed interest in working with the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency. He was later elected Democratic co-chair of the Problem Solvers Caucus.[66] Later that month, he was one of 46 House Democrats who joined Republicans to vote for the Laken Riley Act.[67] On March 6, 2025, Suozzi was one of ten Democrats in Congress who joined all of their Republican colleagues in voting to censure Democratic congressman Al Green for interrupting President Donald Trump's State of the Union Address.[68]
Committee assignments
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For the 119th Congress:[69]
Caucus memberships
Suozzi's caucus memberships include:
- Problem Solvers Caucus (co-chair)[70]
- New Democrat Coalition[71]
- SALT Caucus (co-chair)[72]
- Quiet Skies Caucus (vice chair)[72]
- International Conservation Caucus[73]
- Uyghur Caucus (co-founder and co-chair)[72]
- Democrats for Border Security Task Force (co-chair)[72]
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Personal life
Suozzi and his wife Helene (née Wrotniak) married in 1993. They live in Glen Cove and have three children.[13][14] His son Joe is a minor league baseball player who plays in the New York Mets organization.[74][75] Suozzi is Roman Catholic.[76]
Electoral history
Governor
U.S. House
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See also
Notes
- Pilip has been a registered Democrat since 2012, but was elected to the Nassau County Legislature as a Republican.[51]
References
External links
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