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David Alexander Paterson (born May 20 1954) is an American politician and the current Lieutenant Governor of New York. He is the first African American and the first legally blind person to hold this position. He was selected as running mate by New York Attorney General and Democratic Party nominee Eliot Spitzer in the 2006 New York gubernatorial election. News reports indicated that Governor Spitzer could resign as soon as the morning of March 12 2008, leading media outlets to speculate that Paterson could become the first African American Governor of New York and the first legally blind governor in the nation.

Early life and education

Paterson was born in Brooklyn, with no sight in his left eye and severely limited vision in his right. He has optic atrophy. Paterson received a BA from Columbia University in 1977 and later his law degree from Hofstra Law School. After law school, he went to work for the Queens District Attorney's Office, but failed the New York bar examination, and so did not become an attorney at law. He attributed this to insufficient accommodation for his visual impairment, and has since advocated for changes in bar exam procedures.

Paterson is the son of Basil Paterson, former New York Secretary of State, who was the first African American Deputy Mayor of New York City, and the first African American to run for statewide office in New York. Secretary Paterson was the Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor in 1970. The elder Paterson also served in the New York State Senate, in the same seat his son occupied. The elder Paterson was also the first African American vice-chair of the national Democratic Party.

Professional history

In 1985, he joined the campaign staff of David Dinkins for Manhattan Borough President. In October of that year, longtime state Senator Leon Bogues, representing a district covering Manhattan neighborhoods Harlem, Manhattan Valley and the Upper West Side, died and Paterson won a highly competitive New York County (Manhattan) Democratic Party Committee selection process to serve the rest of Bogues' term. The following year, 1986, he won the seat for his first full term representing the 29th District in the New York State Senate.

In 1993, David Paterson ran citywide for the office of New York Public Advocate, the second highest elected office in the city.

Paterson was elected Senate Minority Leader in 2002, becoming both the first non-white state legislative leader and the highest-ranking black elected official in the history of New York State.

During their 2006 campaign, Paterson was involved in a dispute with Spitzer over "turf wars" between staff members.

In addition to serving as lieutenant governor, he serves as an adjunct professor at Columbia University's School for International and Public Affairs.

In accordance with New York law, if current Governor Eliot Spitzer resigns following the current prostitution allegations and scandal (first reported by the New York Times on March 10, 2008), Paterson would become the first African American governor of New York - the fourth-ever African American United States governor, following Deval Patrick, Douglas Wilder, and P. B. S. Pinchback - and the first legally blind governor in the United States.

Role in Democratic Party politics

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.

He has been mentioned in some political circles as a possible successor to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton should the fellow New York Democrat win the 2008 US presidential election and resign the seat to assume the presidency. Paterson is currently a Democratic party national convention superdelegate and Clinton endorser.

Stem cell research

Paterson is a proponent of embryonic stem cell research. He led Governor Spitzer's successful legislative effort to approve a bond issue in 2007, with at least $1 billion going toward stem cell research. Spitzer and Paterson touted the measure partly for its economic development benefits, following California's $3 billion dollar effort, which in turn had been prompted by the U.S. federal government halting such research. The New York state legislature had opposed funding the research, and it remained controversial.

Activism

Paterson is an active advocate for people with visual and physical impairments. He was elected as a member of the American Foundation for the Blind. Paterson serves on the board of directors of the the Achilles Track Club, an organization which sponsors disabled athletes and disabled veterans competing in marathons.

Personal life

He has a younger brother, Daniel, who is a New York government official. Paterson lives in Harlem with his wife, Michelle Paige Paterson. They have two children: Ashley, who entered Ithaca College in fall, 2006; and Alex, who attends school in New York City.

Paterson is an avid fan of New York sports teams, and has been known to call in to WFAN, a major sports talk radio station in New York City.

Paterson completed the New York City Marathon in 1999.

References

1. ^ Healy, Patrick D. (2006-01-23). "Spitzer Asks State Senator From Harlem to Join Ticket". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
2. Hakim, Danny (2008-03-11). "Resignation by Spitzer Not Likely Today; State in Limbo". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-11. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
3. New York Times (March 11, 2008). "Paterson's Reflections on Projecting Strength, Despite the Obstacles". New York Times.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: year (link)
4. Salmon, Stephanie. "10 Things You Didn't Know About David Paterson". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
5. Smith, Ben (2006-02-12). "Spitzer's Mate David Paterson Is Mystery Man". The New York Observer. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
6. ^ "Official website of the Lieutenant Governor". Retrieved 2008-03-11.
7. Gray, Geoffrey (2006-10-30). "Spitzer's Peace With Paterson". New York. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
8. "Spitzer's Successor Would Be NY's First Black Governor". Topics:Politics & Government. CNBC. Retrieved 2008-03-11. {{cite news}}: Text "2008-03-10" ignored (help)
9. "NY Governor Eliot Spitzer linked to prostitution ring". Blogspot.com. 2008-03-10. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
10. Confessore, Nicholas (2007-01-16). "Spitzer Wants New York to Enter the Stem Cell Race". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
11. Eggleston, Luke (January 18–24, 2007). "Gift of Life". Catholic Sun. Diocese of Syracuse. Retrieved 2008-03-10.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: date format (link)
12. "A Better New York Budget". The New York Times. 2007-04-03. Retrieved 2008-03-10.
13. "Board of Directors". Achilles Track Club. Retrieved on March 11, 2008.
14. "Other WFAN Audio". 2008-02-02. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
15. Kovach, Sue (October 2006). "New York State Senator David A. Paterson". Life Extension Magazine. Retrieved 2008-03-11.

External links

• Project VoteSmart - Senator Paterson Biography
• Official New York State Lieutenant Governor Website
• "New York State Senate Democrats: David A. Paterson". 2005-05-25. Archived from the original on 2006-04-30. State Senate biography.
• "Senator David Paterson: What Others Are Saying". Spitzer-Paterson 2006. Archived from the original on 2006-11-27. Accolades posted to Spitzer's 2006 gubernatorial campaign website.

v t e Governors and lieutenant governors of New York
Governors	G. Clinton Jay G. Clinton Lewis Tompkins Tayler D. Clinton Yates D. Clinton Pitcher Van Buren Throop Marcy Seward Bouck Wright Young Fish Hunt Seymour Clark King Morgan Seymour Fenton Hoffman J. Adams Dix Tilden Robinson Cornell Cleveland Hill Flower Morton Black T. Roosevelt Odell Higgins Hughes White J. Alden Dix Sulzer Glynn Whitman Smith Miller Smith F. Roosevelt Lehman Poletti Dewey Harriman Rockefeller Wilson Carey M. Cuomo Pataki Spitzer Paterson A. Cuomo Hochul
Lieutenant governors	Van Cortlandt S. Van Rensselaer J. Van Rensselaer Broome Tayler Clinton Tayler Swift Tayler Root Tallmadge Pitcher P. Livingston Dayan Throop Stebbins Oliver E. Livingston Tracy Bradish Dickinson Gardiner Lester Fish Patterson Church Raymond Selden Campbell Floyd-Jones Alvord Woodford Beach Robinson Dorsheimer Hoskins Hill McCarthy Jones Sheehan Saxton Woodruff Higgins Bruce Raines Chanler White Cobb Conway Glynn Wagner Schoeneck Walker Wood Lusk Lunn Lowman Corning Lehman Bray Poletti Hanley Wallace Hanley Moore Wicks Mahoney DeLuca Wilson Anderson Krupsak M. Cuomo DelBello Anderson Lundine McCaughey Donohue Paterson Bruno Skelos Smith Espada Ravitch Duffy Hochul Stewart-Cousins Benjamin Stewart-Cousins Delgado
Italics indicate acting officeholders

v t e Elected and appointed statewide political officials of New York
U.S. senators	Chuck Schumer Kirsten Gillibrand
State government	Kathy Hochul, Governor Antonio Delgado, Lieutenant Governor Letitia James, Attorney General Thomas DiNapoli, Comptroller Walter T. Mosley, Secretary of State (appointed)
Senate	Antonio Delgado, President Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Temporary President and Majority Leader Rob Ortt, Minority Leader
Assembly	Carl Heastie, Speaker Jeffrion L. Aubry, Speaker pro tempore Crystal Peoples-Stokes, Majority Leader William Barclay, Minority Leader
Court of Appeals (appointed)	Rowan D. Wilson, Chief Judge Jenny Rivera Michael J. Garcia Anthony Cannataro Madeline Singas Shirley Troutman Caitlin Halligan

• Current events from March 2008
• 1954 births
• Living people
• Lieutenant Governors of New York
• People from Brooklyn
• New York State Senators
• 2004 United States presidential electors
• Blind people
• New York elections, 2006
• Columbia University alumni
• Hofstra University alumni
• New York Democrats
• African American politicians