Lee Zeldin

Lee Michael Zeldin (born January 30, 1980) is an American attorney, politician, and officer in the United States Army Reserve.

He was raised in Suffolk County, New York, and graduated from William Floyd High School in Mastic Beach, New York, in 1998.

He also attended Hebrew school.

Zeldin received a bachelor's degree in political science from the SUNY University at Albany in 2001.

Zeldin lost the election to incumbent governor Kathy Hochul while receiving the highest percentage of the vote for a Republican gubernatorial nominee since 2002 and the highest raw vote total for a Republican gubernatorial nominee since 1970.

Zeldin was born in East Meadow, New York, the son of Merrill Schwartz and David Zeldin.

He received a Juris Doctor from Albany Law School in May 2003.

Zeldin received an Army ROTC commission as a second lieutenant, and served in the United States Army from 2003 to 2007, first in the Military Intelligence Corps.

In 2004, he was admitted to the New York State Bar.

In 2007, he transitioned from active duty to the Army Reserve, where he achieved the rank of lieutenant colonel.

In 2007, Zeldin became an attorney for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

In 2008, he started a general-practice law firm in Smithtown, New York.

In 2008, Zeldin challenged incumbent representative Tim Bishop in New York's 1st congressional district.

Bishop defeated Zeldin 58%–42%.

He operated it full-time until he was elected to New York's 3rd State Senate district in 2010.

In 2010, Zeldin ran in the New York State Senate's 3rd District, challenging Democratic incumbent Brian X. Foley.

Zeldin defeated Foley with 57% of the vote.

From 2011 to 2014, Zeldin served as a member of the New York State Senate from the 3rd Senate district.

During Donald Trump's presidency, Zeldin was a Trump ally.

He prominently defended Trump during his first impeachment hearings concerning the Trump–Ukraine scandal.

In April 2021, Zeldin announced his candidacy for governor of New York in 2022.

He defeated three challengers in the Republican primary, becoming the nominee of the Republican Party and the Conservative Party.

In January 2011, a bill co-sponsored by Zeldin that provided for a 2% property tax cap became law.

In June 2011, Zeldin voted against the Marriage Equality Act, which the Senate passed 33–29.

Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the bill into law.

In a statement after the bill passed, Zeldin said: "It is my belief that marriage should be defined as between a man and a woman."

In December 2011, Zeldin supported a $250 million cut to the MTA payroll tax.

Zeldin was reelected in 2012, defeating Democrat Francis Genco with 56% of the vote.

In March 2012, Zeldin helped to create the PFC Joseph Dwyer PTSD Peer-to-Peer Veterans Support program; funding for the program was included in the 2012–13 New York State Budget.

Zeldin did not vote on the NY SAFE Act, a gun control bill that passed the New York State Senate on January 14, 2013, and later became law.

He missed the vote because he was in Virginia on Army Reserve duty.

In a statement released to the press after the vote, he said he would have voted against the measure.

On October 6, 2013, Zeldin announced he would again seek the Republican nomination to run against Bishop.

His state senate district included much of the congressional district's western portion.

Zeldin defeated George Demos in the Republican primary and ran unopposed for the Conservative Party nomination in the June 24 primary.

On November 4, he defeated Bishop with 54% of the vote.

In February 2014, Zeldin introduced a bill that sought to halt implementation of the Common Core curriculum for three years.

In March 2014, Zeldin voted against the New York Dream Act, which would allow undocumented students who meet in-state tuition requirements to obtain financial aid to study at the university level.

A member of the Republican Party, he represented NY's 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2015 to 2023.

He represented the eastern two-thirds of Suffolk County, including most of Smithtown, all of Brookhaven, Riverhead, Southold, Southampton, East Hampton, Shelter Island, and a small part of Islip.