Kevin Parker (New York politician) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kevin Parker
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NYS_Senator_Kevin_Parker_(cropped).jpg) |
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| Member of the New York State Senate from the 21st district |
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| Assumed office January 1, 2003 |
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| Preceded by | Carl Kruger |
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| Born | March 6, 1967 |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | Pennsylvania State University (BS) |
Kevin Parker (born March 6, 1967) is an American politician from the state of New York. He is a member of the New York State Senate representing the 21st district, which comprises portions of the Brooklyn neighborhoods of East Flatbush, Flatbush, Midwood, Ditmas Park, Kensington, Park Slope, and Windsor Terrace. A Democrat, Parker was first elected to the Senate in 2002.
He ran unsuccessfully in 2001 in the New York City Council District 45 Democratic primary and in 2021 for New York City Comptroller in the Democratic primary. Parker is also known for his angry outbursts, some of which have been violent. In 2010, he was convicted by a jury of two counts of criminal mischief for attacking a New York Post photographer, damaging their camera and car door, and breaking their finger.
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Education and early career
Parker is the son of Sonie and Georgie Parker. He attended P.S. 193, Andries Hudde I.S. 240, and Midwood High School in Brooklyn. Parker received a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Service from Penn State.
Prior to serving in elected office, Parker held a number of different public sector roles, including intergovernmental aide to New York State Comptroller H. Carl McCall and New York City Urban Fellow under Manhattan Borough President and mayoral candidate Ruth Messinger.
In 2001, Parker ran unsuccessfully in the New York City Council District 45 Democratic primary, coming in fifth with 14.95% of the vote.
New York State Senate
Elections
In 2002, Parker defeated former City Councilman Noach Dear in a tightly-contested Democratic primary for a newly drawn, open State Senate seat in Brooklyn. He won the 2002 general election and was elected to the Senate for the first time.
In the 2008 Democratic primary, Parker held off a strong challenge from New York City Councilmembers Simcha Felder and Kendall Stewart. He won the primary with less than 50% of the vote. In 2008, the district was about 60% black, 22% white, and 10% Hispanic. In 2012, Parker's district was redrawn, and remained a majority African American district.
Tenure
On June 24, 2011, the State Senate passed the Marriage Equality Act. Parker voted in favor of the legislation, which was signed into law that evening. However, he stormed to the podium where Lieutenant Gov. Robert Duffy was presiding and then left the Senate floor in protest because he was not allowed to speak on the bill. According to Parker, Senate Democrats had previously been informed that each Senator would have two minutes to explain his or her vote. Parker added that the doors to the Senate chamber were locked on the evening of June 24 to prevent senators from leaving the chamber when the bill was voted upon.
After Democrats won the Senate majority in the 2018 elections, Parker was named Chair of the Committee on Energy and Telecommunications. As of March 2019, Parker served as Majority Whip. The State Senate passed the Reproductive Health Act in 2019, with Parker voting in favor of the bill; then-Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the bill into law. In May 2019, the State Senate passed a Parker-sponsored bill that would ban undetectable firearms.
A Parker-sponsored bill that barred utility companies from shutting off customers' service during the COVID-19 pandemic and other states of emergency was signed into law on June 17, 2020. On October 14, 2020, a Parker-sponsored bill recognizing Juneteenth (June 19) as an official state holiday was enacted, commemorating the day when the news of liberation came to Texas more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation went into effect. Also in 2020, he sponsored a bill that would have recognized racism as a public health crisis.
In 2021, Parker re-introduced legislation to require members of the NYPD to live in the five boroughs.
2021 NYC Comptroller campaign
Parker announced his candidacy in the 2021 New York City Comptroller election. He ran in the Democratic primary against (among others) NYS Senator Brian Benjamin, entrepreneur and former US Marine Zach Iscol, NYC Council member Brad Lander, and NYS Assemblymember David Weprin. Through January 15, 2021, he was fifth in fundraising among all candidates, behind Lander, Iscol, Benjamin, and Weprin. He had raised approximately $122,000 and finished sixth in the Democratic primary, which was won by Lander.
