Peter Vallone, Sr.

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For the current New York City Councilman, see Peter Vallone, Jr..

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Peter F. Vallone, Sr. is an American politician. Born on December 13, 1934, in New York City he attended Fordham University, where he received his BSS in 1956 and his LL.B. in 1959.

His father, Judge Charles J. Vallone (1901-1967) of the Queens County Civil Court, encouraged young Peter to broaden his horizons beyond the limited social interactions with other ethnic and religious groups than were encouraged in the pre-Vatican II era. As an Italian-American, he was chastised by orthodox Catholic Irish priests for consorting with non-Catholics and attending non-Catholic schools.^{[citation needed]}

Vallone is a former Democratic New York City Councilman who represented Astoria, Queens from 1974 to 2001. During that period he emerged as the second most powerful official in the city government, after the mayor, when in an historic event, he became the city’s first Speaker of the City Council in 1986.^{[citation needed]}

Vallone was an unsuccessful candidate for Governor in 1998, and for Mayor in 2001. He currently teaches political science at Baruch College and his biography describing his years in government was published, entitled Learning to Govern: My Life in New York Politics, From Hell Gate to City Hall. Vallone practices law in Astoria, Queens with his son Peter F. Vallone, Jr., who succeeded him in the City Council in 2002. His first cousin, Luigi Vallone, is the mayor of Prizzi, Sicily.

In 2005, Vallone endorsed Republican Michael Bloomberg for Mayor of New York City.

[edit] 1998 NYS Democratic ticket

Governor: Peter Vallone
Lieutenant Governor: Sandra Frankel
Comptroller: Carl McCall
Attorney General: Eliot Spitzer
U.S. Senate: Charles Schumer

[edit] Electoral history

1998 election for Governor
- George Pataki (R) (inc.), 54%
- Peter Vallone (D), 33%
- Tom Golisano (I), 8%

Preceded by Thomas J. Cuite	New York City Council, 20th District 1974–1991	Succeeded by Julia Harrison
Preceded by Arthur Katzman	New York City Council, 22nd District 1992–2001	Succeeded by Peter Vallone, Jr.
Preceded by Thomas J. Cuite	Democratic Party Majority Leader, New York City Council 1986-2001	Succeeded by Joel Rivera
Preceded by (none)	Speaker, New York City Council 1990-2001	Succeeded by Gifford Miller
Preceded by Mario Cuomo	Democratic Nominee for Governor of New York 1998	Succeeded by Carl McCall