Michael McNulty | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait,110th Congress | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew York | |
| In office January 3, 1989 – January 3, 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Samuel S. Stratton |
| Succeeded by | Paul Tonko |
| Constituency | 23rd district (1989–93) 21st district (1993–2009) |
| Member of theNew York State Assembly from the 106th district | |
| In office January 1, 1983 – December 31, 1988 | |
| Preceded by | Neil W. Kelleher |
| Succeeded by | Ronald Canestrari |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1947-09-16)September 16, 1947 (age 78) Troy, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Nancy McNulty |
| Relatives | John J. McNulty Jr. (father) |
| Education | College of the Holy Cross (BA) |
| Signature |  |
Michael Robert McNulty (born September 16, 1947) is a retired American politician from theU.S. state ofNew York. He served in theUnited States House of Representatives from 1989 to 2009 representing New York'sCapital District and was chairman of the House Subcommittee on Social Security in the 110th Congress.
McNulty was born inTroy, New York and attendedTroy public schools. He attended theLa Salle Institute and graduated from St. Joseph's Institute in 1965. He attendedLoyola University Rome Center inRome,Italy from 1967 to 1968. In 1969, McNulty graduated from theCollege of the Holy Cross inWorcester, Massachusetts.
McNulty is a member of the third generation of Catholic,[1]Irish-American family long prominent in Capital District politics. His grandfather, Jack McNulty Sr., was chairman of theGreen Island, New York Democratic Party from 1919 to 1969 andAlbany County Sheriff, and McNulty's father,Jack Jr., followed Jack Sr. as chairman. and also served as sheriff.
Michael McNulty worked as an insurance broker before entering politics. He was first elected to public office in November 1969 as Green Island'stown supervisor; at 22, he was the youngest town supervisor in the state. In 1976, he ran for a seat in theNew York State Assembly in the 106th Assembly District. He lost to Republican incumbentNeil Kelleher 55%-46%.[2] A year later, he succeeded his father as chairman of the Green Island Democratic Party and was also elected as mayor of the village of Green Island, a post he held until 1982.
After redistricting in 1982, AssemblymanNeil W. Kelleher, of the old 106th District, ran in the new 100th Assembly District, and McNulty ran in the new 106th. McNulty was a member of theNew York State Assembly from 1983 to 1988, sitting in the185th,186th and187th New York State Legislatures.
In 1988, U.S. CongressmanSamuel S. Stratton ofNew York's 23rd congressional district announced his withdrawal from the race due to health issues. McNulty was selected to replace him on the ballot. He was elected handily in what was then one of the few reliably Democratic areas in Upstate New York. He was reelected nine more times without serious difficulty. The district was renumbered as the 21st District after the 1990 census.
In 2004, he was challenged byRepublican/LibertarianWarren Redlich, who ran for governor in 2010. McNulty faced Redlich again in 2006 and was reelected with 78% of the vote: his widest margin.[3] He also had a primary challenge in 1996 by Lee H. Wasserman, in which he won by a closer margin than he ever had in the general election.
In October 2007, McNulty announced that he wouldn't seek an 11th term in Congress.[4][5][6]Paul Tonko, who had served alongside McNulty in the State Assembly from 1983 to 1989, won the Democratic nomination to replace McNulty, and subsequently won the general election in November. Despite being an open seat, this was not considered a competitive election, as the 21st is considered the most Democratic district in the state outside of theNew York City-based districts andWestern New York. BothCongressional Quarterly and theCook Political Report rated the race for the 21st's open seat as "Safe Democratic."
Tonko won the Democratic primary on September 9, defeating four other candidates.[7] In the November 4 general election, Tonko defeated Republican Schenectady County Legislator James Buhrmaster by a decisive margin.[8]
McNulty is a moderate Democrat by New York standards. He voted for the War in Iraq, but since changed his stance and cosponsored RepresentativeJohn Murtha's resolution for a phased withdrawal from the region.[9]
McNulty presided over a vote to recommit an agricultural appropriations bill on the night of August 2, 2007 that would have prevented illegal immigrants from receiving food stamps. McNulty claimed the vote tied 214-214 with members changing their votes after time had expired, although he gaveled down a vote and tallied it 212-216 against the motion, while Republicans argued the House screen tally vote was 215-213 in favor to recommit. Republicans chanted "Shame" and later walked out of the House in protest. McNulty and House Majority LeaderSteny Hoyer apologized on the floor the next morning for prematurely gaveling down the vote. In May 2008, a bipartisan investigation panel includingBill Delahunt andMike Pence began working to determine whether the vote had been tallied correctly and what action should be taken, if any. A year later, the panel found that the Democrats did indeed improperly tally the vote.[10]
He was consistently endorsed by both theConservative Party and theWorking Families Party, third parties in New York.
McNulty received an "A" on theDrum Major Institute's 2005Scorecard on middle-class issues.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew York's 23rd congressional district 1979–2005 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew York's 21st congressional district 1993–2009 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former USU.S.Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
