Eliot L. Engel

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Eliot Engel

Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 17th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 1989–
Preceded by	Ted Weiss
Succeeded by	Incumbent

Born	February 18, 1947 (age 60) New York City, New York
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Patricia Ennis
Religion	Jewish

Eliot Lance Engel (born February 18, 1947) is an American Democratic politician from the U.S. state of New York who currently represents the New York State 17th Congressional District (map). The district encompasses portions of the Bronx, Westchester County, and Rockland County. It includes such neighborhoods as Riverdale, Woodlawn, Norwood and Wakefield in the Bronx, Mount Vernon and parts of Yonkers in Westchester, and the towns of Ramapo, Orangetown, and the southern half of Clarkstown in Rockland County.

1 Early life and career
2 Election to Congress
3 Congressional committees
4 Political positions
5 Primary challenges
6 External links

[edit] Early life and career

Engel was born in The Bronx and he graduated from Hunter-Lehman College. He received his Masters Degree in 1973 from Herbert H. Lehman College (CUNY) and his Law Degree from New York Law School in 1987. Engel was elected to the New York general assembly as a Democrat in 1977.

He is married to Patricia Ennis Engel. They have three children, Julia, Jonathan and Philip.

[edit] Election to Congress

In 1988, Engel was elected to the House of Representatives, after defeating Congressman Mario Biaggi in the Democratic primary. Biaggi had been charged with racketeering in the Wedtech scandal; he was eventually jailed by Rudolph W. Giuliani. Biaggi ran against and lost to Engel in 1992.

Engel ran for, and won, re-election in 2006 for his tenth term.

[edit] Congressional committees

Engel is a member of the House International Relations Committee, where he was elected in 2006 as the Ranking Member of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee. He is also on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. He previously served on the Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities.

Engel is also a member of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, the Democratic Study Group on Health, and the Long Island Sound Caucus. He co-chairs the Albanian Issues Caucus and is an Executive Board Member of the Congressional Ad Hoc Committee on Irish Affairs.

[edit] Political positions

Engel is a supporter of recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and has also been an advocate for the causes of Albanian-Americans and ethnic Albanians in Kosovo. In 2003, he authored the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act, which was signed into law by President Bush on December 12, 2003.[1] In this Law, Congress authorized penalties and restrictions on US relations with Syria for its occupation of Lebanon and for its relationship with terrorist groups.

Engel received an "A" on the Drum Major Institute's 2005 Congressional Scorecard on middle-class issues.

Engel was strong supporter of the resolution to invade Iraq in 2002. As the war evolved, his position changed. He now responds to questions about his support for the war by saying that had he known then what he now knows, he would have acted differently.

[edit] Primary challenges

Since his election to Congress in 1988 Engel has faced a series of contentious primary challenges from within the Democratic Party. In 2000, Engel defeated a high-profile challenge from then Bronx State Senator Larry Seabrook, who had received the support of Bronx County Democratic Party Chairman Roberto Ramirez, among others.

In 2006, Engel faced a primary challenge from Jessica Flagg, who based her campaign on the opposition to the Iraq War, and criticism of Engel's refusal to publicly support an immediate withdrawal of American forces from Iraq. In a previous challenge to Engel in 2004, Flagg got 11% of the Democratic primary vote. In her 2006 run she got 18 percent.

[edit] External links

Preceded by Mario Biaggi	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 19th congressional district 1989–1993	Succeeded by Hamilton Fish IV
Preceded by Jerrold Nadler	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 17th congressional district 1993–	Succeeded by Incumbent