Preceded by Guy Velella Name Jeffrey Klein Preceded by George Friedman Role New York State Senator | Succeeded by Naomi Rivera Party Democratic Party Political party Democratic Party Movies The Hidden | |
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Born July 10, 1960 (age 63) ( 1960-07-10 ) Education School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University Similar People Jack Sholder, Gerald T Olson, Robert Shaye, Jim Kouf | ||
Jeffrey David Klein (born July 10, 1960) is a New York State Senator representing parts of Bronx and Westchester Counties. He was elected to his first term in the Senate in 2004. Though he is a member of the Democratic Party, he is the leader of the Independent Democratic Conference, a group of eight Democratic state senators who oppose the mainstream Democratic conference leadership. Klein and his colleagues have reached a power-sharing agreement with the Republican Party in the Senate.
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Biography
A lifelong resident of the northeast Bronx, he was educated in Bronx public schools. Klein received his undergraduate degree from Queens College, an M.P.A. from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, and a J.D. from the City University of New York School of Law, where he was a member of the law review.
A former chief of staff to Congressman James Scheuer, Klein served as a Democratic State Committeeman and District Leader before being elected to the New York State Assembly in 1994. During his ten years representing the 80th Assembly District in the state legislature, Klein served as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime and the Elderly, the Committee on State-Federal Relations, and the Committee on Oversight, Analysis and Investigations.
After former State Senator Guy Velella was convicted on corruption charges, Klein declined to seek reelection to the Assembly in order to run for Velella's seat in the New York Senate. In the Democratic Senate primary, Klein defeated then Assemblyman Stephen B. Kaufman. Prior to running for the Senate, Klein was reported to be considering a race for New York Attorney General in 2006, but did not do so because Andrew Cuomo and Jeanine Pirro were competing for that position. After two years in the Senate, he abandoned plans to run for the Majority Leader position, instead opting for the Deputy Minority Leader spot.
After considering a race for New York Attorney General, Klein opted to run for re-election. In 2010, he was easily re-elected, defeating Republican Frank Vernuccio, a community activist in the Bronx. In January 2011, Klein announced that he would lead a newly formed the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC), a group of breakaway New York State Senate Democrats.
Following the 2010 census, New York redistricted the Senate, expanding it from 62 to 63 seats effective in January 2013. When all election night results were tabulated on November 6, 2012, it appeared that Democrats would hold 33 seats for a three-seat majority, their third Senate majority since World War II. Yet not long after the Senate Democrats' momentous victory, on December 4, 2012, Klein and the Republican Leadership announced a power-sharing agreement between the IDC and the G.O.P. in order to govern the Senate in a bipartisan coalition.Under the agreement, Senators Skelos and Klein would alternate daily as temporary president of the Senate. Also as part of the change, former Democratic Senate Majority Leader Malcolm Smith briefly joined the IDC, but later lost reelection due to a bribery scandal (which he is currently serving time for).
Klein was a prime sponsor of the 2013 New York Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act (NY SAFE Act), which enacted new comprehensive gun control measures statewide in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut and in response to mass shootings nationwide.
Klein is the primary sponsor of proposed "At Rest" legislation which would require liquor sold in New York State to be stored in warehouses located in New York State. Wine retailers, New York wine producers, and smaller wine wholesalers argue that the legislation would drive up the cost of wine and spirits in New York State and significantly benefit large New York State liquor wholesalers such as Empire Merchants, which donated over $53,000 to Klein's campaign between 2009 and 2014.
Prior to the 2013 state budget negotiations, Klein publicly demanded that New York increase its minimum wage as part of a final agreement. Klein's support was seen as critical to the measure's success, which will increase New York's minimum wage to $9 per hour by the end of 2015.
Klein is a partner in the law firm of Klein Calderoni & Santucci, LLP.
Personal life
Klein used to date Diane Savino, a State Senator and fellow member of the IDC.