| John C. Liu 劉醇逸 |
|
|---|---|
| Liu at the 2009 West Indian Day Parade. | |
| New York City Comptroller | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 1, 2010 |
|
| Preceded by | Bill Thompson |
| Member of the New York City Council from the 20th District | |
| In office January 2002 – January 2010 |
|
| Preceded by | Julia Harrison |
| Succeeded by | Peter Koo |
| Constituency | Queens: Flushing, Queensboro Hill, Mitchell Gardens, Kissena Park, Harding Heights, Auburndale; part of Whitestone |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 8, 1967 Taiwan |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Jenny Liu |
| Children | Joey |
| Residence | Flushing, New York, United States |
| Alma mater | Binghamton University |
| Profession | Politician |
| Website | Office of the Comptroller |
John Chun Liu (simplified Chinese: 刘醇逸; traditional Chinese: 劉醇逸; pinyin: Liú Chúnyì, born January 8, 1967 in Taiwan) is a New York City elected official, currently serving as New York City Comptroller. Liu previously served on the New York City Council representing District 20. He was elected to the City Council in 2001 to represent northeast Queens (Flushing, Queensboro Hill, Mitchell Linden, Murray Hill, Holly, Kissena Park, Harding Heights, Auburndale, part of Whitestone) and was re-elected in 2003 and 2005.
Liu entered the New York City Comptroller election in 2009 and won the race on November 3, 2009, becoming the first Asian American to be elected to a city-wide office in New York City.[1][2] He was succeeded in the City Council by pharmacist Republican Peter Koo. Koo, along with Democrat Margaret Chin, a Council member from Manhattan, comprise the Asian-American delegation of the Council.[3]
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At the age of five, he moved with his family to the United States from Taiwan. Chang F. Liu, his father, changed Liu's first name from Chun to John in honor of John F. Kennedy. His brothers became Robert and Edward, while his father became Joseph.[4]
He attended New York City public schools.[5] In 1985, Liu graduated from The Bronx High School of Science, a secondary school.[5][6]
He attended Binghamton University where he majored in Mathematical Physics and graduated in 1988.[5] He worked as a manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers before his election to the City Council.[5][7]
Liu is married to Jenny Liu, an engineer, and has one son, Joey. He resides in Flushing, near where he grew up.
Elected to the New York City Council in 2001 to represent District 20, the northeast Queens area, Liu is the first Taiwanese American and Asian American to be elected to the City Council.[8] He served as the Chairperson of the New York City Council's Transportation Committee and also served on the committees on Education, Consumer Affairs, Health, Land Use, Contracts, Oversight & Investigations and Lower Manhattan Redevelopment.[9]
In March 2009, Liu announced that he was running for the post of New York City Comptroller.[10] Liu has raised $3 million for his political run, more than his competitors. [11]
Beginning in May, Liu picked up several endorsements. The Village Independent Democrats,[12] The Queens County Democratic organization,[13] the local Americans for Democratic Action chapter[14] and the Working Families Party,[15] 1199 SEIU union local and the Uniformed Firefighters Association endorsed him.[16] On September 1, the United Federation of Teachers endorsed Liu.
In the September 15 Democratic primary, Liu was the front-runner, ending up with 133,986 votes, or 38 percent of the vote. Because he did not manage to reach 40 of the vote, a run-off election was required between Liu and runner-up David Yassky, who received 30 percent of the vote in the primary.[17] Two weeks later, Liu won the run-off by taking 55.6% of the vote against Yassky.[18][19]
In the general election on November 3, Liu won the comptroller election with 76% of the vote, a total of 696,330 votes. Republican candidate Joseph Mendola came in second with 19.3% of the vote. After he was officially sworn in to the post, Liu became the first Asian American to hold a city-wide political office in New York City.[1][2]
On December 15, 2011, the New York Times reported that Liu had suffered a steep drop of approval ratings in the wake of a federal investigation into the financing of his campaign. The Times stated that one of his fund-raisers had been arrested for attempting to circumvent campaign contribution limits and that Liu had failed to comply with requirements for reporting the source of his donations.[20]
Liu is one of the leaders of the Asian Political Leadership Fund, a federally-designated 527 fund whose purpose is to promote political leadership from within the Asian American community.[21]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Julia Harrison |
New York City Council, 20th District 2002 – 2009 |
Succeeded by Peter Koo |
| Preceded by Bill Thompson |
New York City Comptroller 2010–present |
Incumbent |
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John C. Lui Honorary Chairman for the Tenement Museum, www.newyorkfashionandevents.vpweb.com