Salvadoran-American politician (born 1977) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Monica R. Martinez (born August 13, 1977) is a Salvadoran-American, civil servant, educator and politician from the state of New York. A Democrat, she is a member of the New York State Senate representing the 4th district. Martinez has also served in the Suffolk County Legislature, representing the 9th district. She is a former Assistant Principal at East Middle School in Brentwood, NY.
Monica Martinez | |
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| Member of the New York State Senate | |
| Assumed office January 1, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | New Seat |
| Constituency | 4th District |
| In office January 1, 2019 – December 31, 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas Croci |
| Succeeded by | Alexis Weik |
| Constituency | 3rd District |
| Member of the Suffolk County Legislature from the 9th district | |
| In office January 2, 2014 – December 31, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Ricardo Montano |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Gonzalez |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 13, 1977 El Salvador |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Residence | Brentwood, New York |
| Alma mater | Stony Brook University New York University Binghamton University |
| Profession | Educator |
| Website | Official website |
Martinez was born in El Salvador and moved to the United States at the age of 3.[1][2] She received her bachelor's degree from Binghamton University, and subsequently a masters and administrative degree from New York University and Stony Brook University respectively.[3] Martinez worked as a social studies teacher at Brentwood High School for 10 years before becoming the assistant principal of Brentwood's East Middle School.[4]
In 2013, Martinez defeated incumbent Suffolk County Legislator Ricardo Montano in the Democratic primary and was subsequently elected to represent Suffolk County's 9th Legislative District.[5][6] As a legislator, Martinez was known for taking legislative action on the issues of woman's equality and animal rights.[7][8] Martinez was appointed chairwoman to the Public Safety Committee and pledged to help eradicate the Long Island gang violence epidemic through collaboration with local law enforcement officials.[9]
Martinez resides in Brentwood, New York. She is the younger sister of the Town of Babylon, New York, councilman Antonio Martinez.[10]
On June 5, 2018, Martinez announced her intention to seek the New York State Senate seat being vacated by Thomas Croci.[11] On November 6, 2018, Martinez defeated Assemblyman Dean Murray by more than 2,500 votes.[12][13]
Martinez was named chair for the Committee on Domestic Animal Welfare.[14]
Martinez opposed the Driver's License Access and Privacy Act, a law that authorized undocumented immigrants to obtain New York driver licenses. Of all Senators voting against the bill, Senator Martinez faced the most criticism; she changed her position on the issue after becoming a New York State Senator.[15] Martinez faced protest[16] and has been accused of flip-flopping on the issue and of betraying her own community of origin.[17][18]
Bills introduced by Martinez that were signed into law include:
In November 2020, Martinez lost her re-election bid to Republican Alexis Weik.[23] However, on February 14, 2022, Martinez announced her candidacy to once again represent New York's 3rd Senate District in the 2022 general election.[24] Due to redistricting, Martinez later switched to run in the newly drawn 4th Senate District.[25] She was elected on November 8, 2022, defeating businesswoman Wendy Rodriguez with 49.18% of the vote, compared to Rodriguez's 46.85%.[26]
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