Leecia Eve facts for kids

Leecia Roberta Eve is an American lawyer from New York. She has worked for the government and for private companies. Currently, she works as a lobbyist for a big phone company called Verizon. A lobbyist tries to convince lawmakers to support certain ideas or laws.

Leecia Eve was born in Buffalo, New York. In 2006, she ran for Lieutenant Governor of New York. This job is like a vice-governor for the state. Later, she worked for U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton. She was also a senior advisor during Clinton's 2008 campaign for President.

From 2011 to 2013, Leecia Eve helped Governor Andrew M. Cuomo with economic development in New York. In 2017, she joined the Board of Commissioners for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. This group manages important transportation hubs like airports and bridges. In 2018, she ran for Attorney General of New York, which is the state's chief lawyer, but she did not win the election.

Her Early Life and Education

Leecia Eve grew up in Buffalo, New York. She is African-American. Her father, Arthur Eve, was a Deputy Speaker in the New York State Assembly. This means he was an important leader in the state's law-making group. Her mother is Constance Eve.

Leecia Eve went to college at Smith College. Then, she studied at Harvard University and Harvard Law School. After law school, she worked for a judge named Fritz W. Alexander II. This job is called clerking. She later became a partner at a law firm called Hodgson Russ. A partner is a senior lawyer in a firm.

Working in Government and Business

Leecia Eve also worked for U.S. Senators Joseph Biden and Hillary Clinton. She was a special advisor to Senator Clinton on homeland security. She also helped Clinton with her presidential campaign in 2008.

In 2011, Governor Andrew Cuomo chose Leecia Eve for an important role. She became a Senior Vice President at the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC). This group helps businesses grow in New York. Later that year, she became the Deputy Secretary for Economic Development for the Governor. This meant she helped plan how to improve the state's economy.

In 2017, Governor Cuomo appointed her to the Board of Commissioners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. This board makes decisions about major transportation projects.

Since 2018, Leecia Eve has been a Vice President of Government Affairs at Verizon. In this role, she works to represent Verizon's interests to the government.

Leecia Eve is also a member of the Board of Directors for the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center. This center helps people with cancer. In 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul made her the Chair of this board.

She is also a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. This is a group for college women that focuses on friendship and community service.

Her Political Campaigns

In 2005, Leecia Eve decided to run for Lieutenant Governor of New York. Many important political leaders from Harlem supported her. These included Congressman Charles Rangel and former New York City Mayor David Dinkins. However, the person running for Governor, Eliot Spitzer, chose someone else as his running mate. A running mate is the person who runs for Lieutenant Governor with the Governor candidate.

Later, when Hillary Clinton left her U.S. Senate job, David Paterson thought about choosing Leecia Eve to take her place.

In 2018, Leecia Eve was one of four people who ran for Attorney General of New York. This election was a "Democratic primary," where voters choose which Democrat will run in the main election. A newspaper called the Times Union supported her. On September 13, 2018, she lost the primary election to Letitia James. Leecia Eve received 3.4% of the votes.