Patricia Fahy | |
|---|---|
 Fahy in 2025 | |
| Member of theNew York State Senate from the46th district | |
| Assumed office January 1, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Neil Breslin |
| Member of theNew York State Assembly from the109th district | |
| In office January 1, 2013 – December 31, 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Jack McEneny |
| Succeeded by | Gabriella Romero |
| Personal details | |
| Born | |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Wayne Bequette |
| Children | 2 |
| Residence | Albany, New York |
| Alma mater | Northern Illinois University (BA),University of Illinois, Chicago (MPA) |
| Profession | Educator,politician |
| Signature |  |
| Website | Official website |
Patricia Fahy is anAmerican politician and a member of theDemocratic Party, who currently represents parts ofAlbany County,Schenectady County, andMontgomery County in theNew York State Senate, including all of the city ofAlbany. She was previously was Assemblymember for the 109th District, representing parts of Albany County, for 12 years. Before serving on the state legislature, Fahy was president of the Albany City Board of Education. She is the first woman in New York State history to be elected to the Capital Assembly and Senate seats.
On September 13, 2012, there was a primary election in the Democratic Party[1] to replace the retiring incumbentJack McEneny, who had been an assemblyman for 20 years. Fahy received 5,335 votes (36.34%) in a crowded field that included Frank J. Commisso, Jr., Christopher T. Higgins, William J. McCarthy, Jr., Jim Coyne and Margarita Perez, as well as write-in candidates.[2] Ted J. Danz, Jr., however, beat Fahy in the Independence Party primary held the same date, 51 to 46%, with some write-ins.[2] Her opponents were all politically well-connected: Commisso, Jr. was a sitting member of the Albany Common Council; Higgins was a sitting member of the Albany County Legislature; McCarthy was an attorney andscion of a well-known family of the area; Perez was a notable local political activist; businessman Danz had been active in local Republican politics for decades.
In the November 2012 general election, Fahy won with 37,967 votes, or almost 63%, on the Democratic and Working Family party lines, against Danz, who received about 32.5% on the Republican and Independence lines, and theperennial candidate andTea Party activist Joseph P. Sullivan on the Conservative line, who got about 3.5% of the vote.[3]
Fahy succeeded retiring incumbent state senatorNeil Breslin ofNew York's 46th State Senate District after defeating[4]Republican Ted Danz in the2024 election, 56% to 44%.[5]
Fahy raised concerns about the impact of GovernorAndrew Cuomo's proposed 2014-2015 budget on P-12 education.[6]
In February 2017, Fahy, along with Albany MayorKathy Sheehan and CongressmanPaul Tonko, were criticized by BishopEdward Scharfenberger for being Catholic politicians who supported and attended a rally forPlanned Parenthood. The rally, which drew hundreds of attendees in support of Planned Parenthood, emphasized the risk of losing services like pregnancy testing and cancer screening due to potential federal funding cuts.[7]
In 2019, Fahy penned anop-ed in theAlbany Times Union that called for the reimagining ofI-787. In 2022, she secured $5 million for a feasibility study to reimagine the highway, and in 2025, GovernorKathy Hochul pledged $35 million to fully reimagine 787 alongside downtown Albany as part of the $400 million 'Championing Albany's Potential' initiative.[8]
In 2021, Fahy sponsored and passed New York State's first-everGun Industry Liability Law with State SenatorZellnor Myrie to hold the firearms industry accountable for their role in thegun violence epidemic.[9]
In 2022, Fahy sponsored and passed the nation's firstright to repair law, the New York Digital Fair Repair Act, which requires manufacturers of certain electronic devices to make diagnostic and repair information, parts, and tools available to independent repair shops and consumers on "fair and reasonable terms". Since then, multiple states have introduced and passed different versions of their own right-to-repair laws.[10]
Fahy also sponsored legislation, passed and signed into law in 2022, that requires New York State to conserve 30% of its land and water by 2030 as part of the30 by 30 movement.[11]
In 2024, as the Higher Education Chair in the Assembly, Fahy led the push to '#TurnOnTheTap' and expand New York State's Tuition Assistance Program (TAP), which assists middle and low-income students with the cost of tuition atSUNY andCUNY schools. This resulted in the first expansion in New York's financial assistance program for students in more than 25 years and a doubling of award amounts.[12]
At the beginning of 2025, Fahy continued her longtime push to significantly expand New York'sEarned Income Tax Credit under legislation she sponsors to support working and middle class households amid the 2025 affordability crisis in the United States.[13]
On March 27, 2025, Fahy introduced a bill that would issue new certificates of registration to ZEV-exclusive manufacturers not previously permitted to participate in direct manufacturer auto sales in New York State.[14]
On July 15, 2025, Fahy introduced legislation that would banICE agents from wearing masks during civilian immigration actions conducted in New York State.[15]
| New York State Senate | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | New York State Senate, 46th District January 1, 2025 – present | Incumbent |
| New York State Assembly | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | New York State Assembly, 109th District January 1, 2013 – December 31, 2024 | Succeeded by |
