Mark Grisanti

Mark John Grisanti (born October 21, 1964) is an American lawyer, politician, and judge from New York. After being elected to the New York State Senate in District 60 as a Republican in 2010, Grisanti took office as a State Senator on January 3, 2011. Grisanti served in the State Senate from 2011 to 2014, when he was defeated in the Republican primary and in the general election. Grisanti was appointed to the New York State Court of Claims in May 2015 and later became an Acting Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Eighth Judicial District.

Mark Grisanti
Acting Justice of the New York State Supreme Court from the 8th Judicial district
Assumed office
2015
Member of the New York Senate
from the 60th district
In office
January 1, 2011 – December 31, 2014
Preceded byAntoine Thompson
Succeeded byMarc Panepinto[1]
Personal details
Born
Mark John Grisanti
Political partyDemocratic (before 2011)
Republican (2011-present)[2][3]
SpouseMaria Grisanti[4]
Residence(s)Buffalo, New York, United States
Alma materThomas M. Cooley Law School
ProfessionLawyer, politician, judge

Grisanti is notable as one of four Republican members of the New York State Senate that voted in favor of the Marriage Equality Act in 2011.

Early life, education, and early career

Grisanti was raised in Buffalo as the youngest of six brothers and sisters.[5] He graduated from Canisius College and Thomas M. Cooley Law School.[6] After graduating from law school, Grisanti worked at the law firm that his grandfather had founded in 1921.[7]

New York State Senate career

2008 State Senate campaign

Grisanti was defeated in the 2008 Democratic primary for the 60th Senate District, losing heavily to Antoine Thompson, 72 to 28 percent;[8][9] Thompson went on to win the senate seat in the state's 2008 general election.[10]

2010 State Senate campaign

Grisanti stood for election to the State Senate again in the 2010 state senate elections; this time, he ran as a Republican.[2][3] During his campaign, Grisanti declared himself to be "unalterably opposed" to same-sex marriage.[11]

Grisanti defeated incumbent Senator Antoine Thompson by 525 votes. His victory, which was initially challenged, was considered an upset.[12][13] Grisanti's victory helped the GOP obtain regain the Senate majority by a slender 32-30 margin.[14]

As of 2011, the 60th Senate District was the most Democratic-leaning of the all Republican-held Senate seats, with 104,000 registered Democrats and 22,000 registered Republicans.[12] Although Grisanti was a registered Democrat during the race, he received a waiver to run on the Republican line. After his victory, he agreed to caucus with Senate Republicans and switched his party registration to Republican.[2]

2012 State Senate campaign

In 2012, Grisanti received significant support and visibility from Senate Republicans; the party engaged in a "Protect Grisanti" effort to increase his electability in the lead-up to the elections.[12] According to The Buffalo News, he also received "significant contributions from the gay community" on the heels of his 2011 vote for same-sex marriage.[15]

Grisanti faced a challenge in the Republican primary for the 60th district from attorney Kevin Stocker of Kenmore, NY. Grisanti won the primary with a 60 percent to 40 percent margin after a campaign in which "much of the bitterest politicking had revolved around Grisanti's controversial 2011 vote to support legalizing same-sex marriage in the state."[16] "We took the high road, because we don't care about the smut, we care about what is important for the residents of Western New York," Grisanti said.[17] Grisanti's primary campaign was more successful than the primary campaigns of the other two Senate Republicans who voted for same-sex marriage and ran for re-election;[18] Sen. Stephen Saland barely defeated his primary challenger,[19] while Sen. Roy J. McDonald was defeated by Kathy Marchione.[20]

Grisanti's same-sex marriage vote also cost him the Conservative Party line.[15] Both the Conservative Party and the National Organization for Marriage endorsed Charles Swanick to run against Sen. Grisanti in 2012.[21]

Grisanti won re-election in the 2012 general election, receiving 63,683 votes. Democratic candidate Michael L. Amodeo came in second with 45,140 votes, Charles Swanick received 15,027 votes on the Conservative line, and Gregory Davis received 3,078 votes on the Working Families Party line.[22]

2014 State Senate campaign

Sen. Grisanti was defeated by Kevin Stocker in a Republican primary in September 2014.[23][24] While Sen. Grisanti remained in the 2014 general election race on a third-party line, he finished in third place in a hotly contested election; the winner, Democrat Marc Panepinto, received only 3,681 votes more than Grisanti did.[25]

Tenure

Grisanti had declared his opposition to same-sex marriage during his 2010 campaign.[11] On June 24, 2011, following multiple meetings with Democratic New York Governor Andrew Cuomo,[26] Grisanti voted in favor of the Marriage Equality Act, which allows gender-neutral marriages for both same- and opposite-sex couples in New York. Grisanti stated that he had researched the issue and that "a man can be wiser today than yesterday, but there can be no respect for that man if he has failed to do his duty." Grisanti was one of four Republican state senators that voted in favor of the Marriage Equality Act.[27][28]

On February 11, 2012, Grisanti was involved in an altercation at a fundraising gala held at the Seneca Niagara Casino. The altercation involved a casino shareholder who accused the senator of hating the Seneca nation, which owns the casino.[4][29] Grisanti said he had been attacked after trying to mediate a dispute, but some witnesses told reporters that he was the aggressor.[30][31] No charges were filed.[32]

In January 2013, Sen. Grisanti voted in favor of the NY SAFE Act, a controversial gun control measure.[33][34]

Also in 2013, Grisanti was a signatory to an amicus curiae brief submitted to the Supreme Court in support of same-sex marriage in the Hollingsworth v. Perry case.[35]

Judicial career

In 2015, Grisanti was appointed to the New York State Court of Claims by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Grisanti's appointment was confirmed by the New York State Senate in May 2015.[36] As of October 2018, Grisanti serves as an Acting Justice of the New York State Supreme Court for the Eighth Judicial District.[37]

As of January 2021, Grisanti was under investigation by the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct in connection with a June 22, 2020 confrontation with members of the Buffalo Police Department.[38] After police were called to a dispute between Grisanti and neighbors, police attempted to handcuff Grisanti's wife. A shirtless Grisanti pushed one of the officers, used profanities, stated that the officer "would be sorry" if his wife were not released, and stated that he knew the mayor. Grisanti was handcuffed and placed in a police vehicle, but was not charged over the incident.[39][40] However, video footage of the incident went viral and gained national media attention.[38][26][39][40]

See also

References
  1. "NYS Senator Panepinto not seeking re-election". WKBW. March 15, 2016.
  2. Fairbanks, Phil (November 11, 2010). "Grisanti's Loyalties Lean Toward Senate GOP – Democrat Could Hold Key to Albany Power". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on November 24, 2010. Retrieved June 25, 2011. Grisanti confirmed late Tuesday his intention to caucus with Republicans if he is declared the winner of the contested race in the 60th District[...]. The registered Democrat also announced his intention to switch his party enrollment to Republican.
  3. New York State Board of Elections (January 27, 2011). "NYS Board of Elections Senate Election Returns November 2, 2010" (PDF). p. 13. Archived from the original (PDF – 296 KB; requires Acrobat Reader) on August 23, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2011. Mark J. Grisanti REP
  4. "State senator, wife attacked at western NY casino". Fox News. February 11, 2012. Archived from the original on April 22, 2012. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
  5. "Senator Mark Grisanti". NY State Senate.
  6. "Mark J. Grisanti". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  7. Meyer, Brian. "Grisanti, Thompson spar over spending, ethics ; Election could turn on 'Paladino factor'". The Buffalo News.
  8. Wozniak, Mark; Riedel, Howard (September 10, 2008). "Kryzan Wins Congressional Primary, Hoyt Holds Off Kavanaugh". WBFO. Archived from the original on September 18, 2008. Retrieved June 25, 2011. In the 60th district Democratic primary, incumbent Antoine Thompson defeated challenger Mark Grisanti 72 to 28 percent.
  9. Scheer, Mark (September 7, 2008). "Election: Grisanti, Thompson Vie for Democratic Line Tuesday". Niagara Gazette. Archived from the original on October 5, 2011. Retrieved June 25, 2011. Tuesday's Democratic primary between Grisanti and Thompson will likely be a winner-take-all affair.[...]There are no candidates on the Republican, Conservative or Independence lines.
  10. "Election Results 2008". New York Times archives. Archived from the original on 11 May 2012. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  11. Reader, Stephen. "Gay Marriage in NYS: Who are the Republican Targets?". WNYC. Archived from the original on 2011-08-24. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
  12. Precious, Tom (June 13, 2011). "Style, Skill Give 'Marginal' Grisanti an Edge – A study in Contrasts, Freshman Senator Earns Respect from Colleagues on Both Sides of Aisle". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on June 16, 2011. Retrieved June 25, 2011.
  13. Gee, Denise Jewell (February 20, 2011). "The Mysterious $400,000 Grant – Thompson's Office Had Funds Redirected, and Documents Shed Light on Transaction". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on February 23, 2011. Retrieved June 25, 2011.
  14. Quint, Michael (2010-12-04). "New York Republicans Regain State Senate Majority as Judge Certifies Race". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on 2011-11-21. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
  15. McCarthy, Robert J. "Sen. Grisanti airs ads; Democrats eye rival". The Buffalo News.
  16. "Deadlocked races for two GOPers who backed gay marriage in New York". Politico.Com. 2012-09-13. Archived from the original on 2014-04-07. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
  17. Vogel, Charity (2012-09-14). "Grisanti, Amodeo win big in 60th". Buffalo News. Archived from the original on 2012-09-18. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
  18. Kaplan, Thomas (September 13, 2012). "Primary Results Close for 2 G.O.P. Legislators Who Voted for Same-Sex Marriage". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 26, 2012. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  19. Kaplan, Thomas (November 7, 2012). "Republicans Try to Keep Control of New York State Senate". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 28, 2016. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  20. Kaplan, Thomas (September 27, 2012). "Roy J. McDonald, Republican Who Voted for Gay Marriage, Won't Pursue Third-Party Bid". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 23, 2017. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  21. "National Organization For Marriage Backing Swanick". Capitaltonight.com. 2012-02-27. Archived from the original on 2013-01-18. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
  22. "New York State Senate Election Results, November 6, 2012" (PDF). Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  23. "Stocker defeats Grisanti in Republican primary". wgrz.com. 2014-09-09. Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  24. McNeil, Harold. "Stocker upsets Grisanti in GOP Senate primary". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  25. "New York State Senate Election Results, November 4, 2014" (PDF). Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  26. "Once a political ally, Cuomo distances himself from embattled judge Grisanti". WKBW. October 15, 2020.
  27. Jackson, Nicholas (24 June 2011). "New York Legislature Legalizes Gay Marriage in 33-29 Vote". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on 25 October 2018. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
  28. Confessore, Nicholas; Barbaro, Michael (24 June 2011). "New York Allows Same-Sex Marriage, Becoming Largest State to Pass Law". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 May 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
  29. Eligon, John (14 February 2012). "Accounts Differ of Fight With Legislator, His Wife and Tribe Members". The New York Times. p. A21. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
  30. Shanahan, Ed (17 October 2020). "Buffalo Police Camera Catches Judge Pushing And Threatening Officer". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
  31. Eligon, John (February 13, 2012). "Grisanti's Account of Fracas at Seneca Casino Is Met With Objections". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 1, 2017. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  32. "No Charges In Sen Grisanti Casino Scuffle". newyork.cbslocal.com. 26 February 2012. Archived from the original on 2 May 2019. Retrieved 2 May 2019.
  33. Terreri, Jill. "Grisanti's primary campaign traces a fine line". The Buffalo News.
  34. Precious, Tom (28 October 2014). "Candidates for governor using SAFE Act to show their philosophical differences". Archived from the original on 2 May 2019. Retrieved 2 May 2019.
  35. Avlon, John (28 February 2013). "The Pro-Freedom Republicans Are Coming: 131 Sign Gay Marriage Brief". The Daily Beast – via www.thedailybeast.com.
  36. "Mark Grisanti appointed to New York Court of Claims". WIVB-TV. 5 May 2015. Archived from the original on 10 May 2015. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  37. "8th Judicial District". NYCourts.gov Unified Court System. The State of New York. Archived from the original on October 25, 2018. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  38. Herbeck, Dan. "State probe into brawl with Buffalo police could cost Grisanti his judgeship". The Buffalo News.
  39. Shanahan, Ed (2020-10-16). "A Judge Pushes a Police Officer and Hurls Threats, but Isn't Charged". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
  40. Peiser, Jaclyn (October 25, 2020). "A shirtless New York Supreme Court judge shoved a police officer. He wasn't charged". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
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