Marc Molinaro

Early life

Molinaro was born in Yonkers, New York, to Anthony Molinaro and Dona Vananden. After his parents' divorce, he and his mother moved to Beacon, New York, in 1980, and to Tivoli, New York, in 1989. Molinaro's mother struggled financially, and the family received food stamps. Molinaro graduated from Dutchess Community College in 2001 with an Associate of Science degree in humanities and social sciences.

Early political career

Molinaro was first elected to public office at the age of 18 in 1994, when he was elected to the Village of Tivoli's Board of Trustees. In 1995, he became the youngest mayor in the U.S. when he was elected mayor of Tivoli. He was reelected five times, and also served in the Dutchess County Legislature.

New York State Assembly

In 2006, Molinaro was elected to represent the 103rd District in the New York State Assembly. He served in the Assembly until 2011. In January 2011, at the recommendation of Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb, Governor Andrew Cuomo appointed Molinaro to serve on the Governor's Mandate Relief Redesign Team.

Dutchess County Executive

Molinaro announced his bid to succeed 20-year Dutchess County Executive William Steinhaus in May 2011. The campaign was endorsed by the county's Republican, Conservative, and Independence parties. On June 3, Beekman supervisor Dan French won the Democratic nomination. Molinaro won the November 8, 2011, election with 62% of the vote. He was sworn into office on January 1, 2012. In 2015, Molinaro was reelected, defeating Democratic nominee Diane Jablonski, 30,181 votes to 17,539. Molinaro won a third term in 2019, defeating Democratic nominee Joseph Ruggiero, 41,285 votes to 29,293.

In 2014, Molinaro was awarded the Pace University Land Use Law Center's Groundbreaker's Award. As county executive, he spearheaded a 2015 initiative called "Think Differently" for people with disabilities; he also appointed a Deputy Commissioner of Special Needs in 2016. In 2015, Molinaro was elected second vice president of the New York State Association of Counties.

2018 gubernatorial election

Main article: 2018 New York gubernatorial election

In March 2018, Molinaro informed Republican leaders that he would run for governor of New York in the 2018 election. He announced his candidacy on April 2, 2018, and was endorsed by the New York Conservative Party on April 13. On May 23, the Republican Party unanimously nominated Molinaro for governor at its state convention, three days after the Reform Party endorsed Molinaro for its gubernatorial ticket. Molinaro's running mate was Julie Killian, a former Rye City councilwoman and state senate candidate. While he was described as a moderate during the campaign, Molinaro said in a March 2018 interview that he considered himself a communitarian, explaining that he believed leaders need to bring together community members of different perspectives to solve the problems they face.

On Election Day, Molinaro lost to incumbent Democratic governor Andrew Cuomo by a margin of 60% to 36%.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2022 special

Main article: 2022 New York's 19th congressional district special election

On September 21, 2021, Molinaro announced his candidacy for Congress in New York's 19th congressional district. Ten days after this announcement, his campaign reported raising at least $350,000. A special election to fill the 19th congressional district seat was held in August 2022. The seat was left vacant following Antonio Delgado's appointment as Lieutenant Governor of New York. Molinaro lost the special election to Democrat Pat Ryan.

2022 general

Molinaro was also the Republican nominee in the November 2022 general election in the 19th district. In that election, he faced Democratic nominee Josh Riley. He narrowly won the House seat with 50.8% of the vote.

2024 general

Molinaro sought reelection in 2024. He faced Riley in a rematch of their 2022 race. Riley defeated Molinaro.

Tenure

Molinaro was among a group of New York congressman calling for the ultimately successful expulsion of George Santos from Congress.

Caucus memberships

• Climate Solutions Caucus
• Republican Main Street Partnership

Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration

In February 2025, President Donald Trump nominated Molinaro to be the Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration. While awaiting U.S. Senate confirmation, Molinaro worked as a Senior Advisor at the FTA. On August 2, 2025, Molinaro was confirmed by the Senate in a 71–23 vote. He was sworn in two days later on August 4.

Political positions

In 2024, Molinaro was rated as the second most bipartisan member of the U.S. House during the 118th United States Congress in the Bipartisan Index created by The Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy. He has sponsored several bipartisan bills to help children and adults with disabilities.

Molinaro supports same-sex marriage. He said that he would have voted for the Respect for Marriage Act had he been in office during the 117th Congress.

Regarding abortion rights, Molinaro made the following remarks in 2022:

During the 118th Congress, Molinaro voted for the Parents Bill of Rights in Education, a bill that would require public schools to disclose information including budget, curriculum, and school performance to parents.

Personal life

Molinaro and his wife, Corinne Adams, reside in Catskill, New York. Molinaro has two children with his first wife Christy and two children with Adams. One of his children is on the autism spectrum.

Molinaro is Protestant.

Electoral history

References

References

1. "Former Rep. Marc Molinaro". LegiStorm.
2. (October 8, 2018). "Make sure you wish New York's next Governor a Happy Birthday today! And if you're feeling generous, give Marc a gift and donate to the campaign: https://secure.anedot.com/molinaroforny/donate #HappyBirthdayMarc #BelieveAgain".
3. Wonton, Michael. (January 4, 2023). "William F.X. O'Neil Sworn In As Dutchess County Executive". Patch Media.
4. (November 1, 2018). "Marc Molinaro: From teenage mayor to taking on Gov. Andrew Cuomo". Democrat and Chronicle.
5. (September 24, 2021). "Molinaro to Run for Congress".
6. Barry, John. (April 2, 2018). "Marc Molinaro: A Timeline of his career". Poughkeepsie Journal.
7. Arbetter, Susan. (April 17, 2020). "Marc Molinaro Speaks Openly on the Loss of His Father Anthony Molinaro".
8. Campbell, Jon. "Marc Molinaro: From teenage mayor to taking on Gov. Andrew Cuomo".
9. Precious, Tom. (October 22, 2018). "Marc Molinaro: from teen mayor to (he hopes) Republican governor".
10. Segers, Grace. (April 3, 2018). "5 things to know about Marcus Molinaro". City & State New York.
11. McKinley, Jesse. (April 2, 2018). "A Republican With Small-Town Roots Launches Bid for Governor". The New York Times.
12. De Avila, Joseph. (May 23, 2018). "New York Republicans Nominate Dutchess County's Marc Molinaro for Governor". The Wall Street Journal.
13. "Governor Cuomo Announces Members Of The Mandate Relief Redesign Team".
14. "Dutchess County Executive Results: Molinaro beats French handily".
15. Ferro, John. (November 3, 2015). "Molinaro wins reelection as DC executive".
16. "2015 Dutchess County Election Results".
17. (November 6, 2019). "Molinaro Wins Re-Election As Dutchess County Executive".
18. "2019 Dutchess County Election Results".
19. (March 8, 2018). "Molinaro tells more GOP leaders he's running for NY governor". [[North Country Public Radio]].
20. John W. Barry and Joseph Spector. (April 2, 2018). "Marc Molinaro: Candidate for governor cites 'rendezvous with destiny'". Poughkeepsie Journal.
21. Lovett, Kenneth. "NYS Conservative Party leaders back Molinaro for governor".
22. Blain, Glenn. "Marcus Molinaro accepts New York GOP nomination for governor".
23. Vielkind, Jimmy. (May 20, 2018). "Reform Party nominates Molinaro, backs Bharara for attorney general".
24. Lovett, Ken. (May 20, 2018). "Marcus Molinaro picks ex-Senate candidate Julie Killian to be running mate". New York Daily News.
25. Klepper, David. (October 24, 2018). "Molinaro Looks to Buck Blue Wave, Topple Cuomo in NY".
26. "Molinaro running for governor as 'ordinary NYer'".
27. Foderaro, Lisa W.. (May 23, 2018). "Republicans Choose Their Alternative to Gov. Cuomo: Marcus Molinaro". The New York Times.
28. Max, Ben. "In Run for Governor, Marc Molinaro Will Make a Character Argument".
29. (November 7, 2018). "Live map: 2018 midterm elections results".
30. "2018 New York State Election Results".
31. "Molinaro reports raising $350,000 for House run in 10 days".
32. (August 22, 2022). "Special election in bellwether N.Y. district may offer midterm clues". NBC News.
33. (November 8, 2022). "New York 19th Congressional District Election Results". The New York Times.
34. (October 22, 2024). "Riley leads Molinaro by 4 points in exclusive NewsChannel 13/SurveyUSA poll".
35. (November 6, 2024). "Democrats Flip a Second House Seat in New York, Toppling Molinaro". The New York Times.
36. Nazzaro, Miranda. (November 30, 2023). "Molinaro rips Santos: He 'manufactured his entire life to defraud voters'".
37. (January 3, 2023). "About Climate Solutions Caucus". Climate Solutions Caucus.
38. "Candidates".
39. Davis, Jeff. (2025-02-07). "FTA, PHMSA Heads Nominated; Duffy Announces Senior DOT Staff".
40. Marquette, Chris. (June 23, 2025). "POLITICO Pro: Former Rep. Molinaro working as senior adviser to Duffy pending Senate confirmation for FTA job".
41. The Highlands Current Staff. (2025-08-03). "Senate Approves Molinaro as Transit Head".
42. https://x.com/FTA_DOT/status/1952456647000854834?t=KlsG2mmMeAn117vR-zxA9Q&s=19
43. (May 18, 2024). "Molinaro, Lawler ranked near top for bipartisan House work in 2023, annual score finds". USA Today.
44. Mahoney, Joe. (December 8, 2022). "Stefanik votes with House Democrats on gay marriage measure".
45. Racioppi, Dustin. "We asked NY's 19th House district candidates about issues in the midterms. What they said".
46. "Michael Lawler breaks GOP ranks, votes against 'Parents Bill of Rights' he co-sponsored".
47. (September 25, 2023). "Months after taking office, U.S. Rep. Molinaro moves into district he represents". The Daily Freeman.
48. Campbell, Jon. "Marc Molinaro: From teenage mayor to taking on Gov. Andrew Cuomo".
49. "Marcus J. Molinaro - Biography".
50. (December 2022). "Religious affiliation of members of 118th Congress". PEW Research Center.
51. (August 23, 2022). "New York 19th Congressional District Special Election Results". The New York Times.
52. (August 24, 2022). "New York State Unofficial Election Night Results". [[New York State Board of Elections]].
53. (November 5, 2024). "2024 General". [[New York State Board of Elections.