Tony Avella
Tony Avella | |
|---|---|
| Member of the New York Senate from the 11th district | |
| In office January 1, 2011 – December 31, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Frank Padavan |
| Succeeded by | John Liu |
| Member of the New York City Council from the 19th district | |
| In office January 1, 2002 – December 31, 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Michael Abel |
| Succeeded by | Dan Halloran |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 27, 1951 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Other political affiliations | Independent Democratic Conference (2014–2018) |
| Spouse | Judith Cashman |
| Education | Hunter College (BA) |
Anthony Avella Jr. (born October 27, 1951) is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented the New York State Senate's 11th district in northeast Queens from 2011 to 2019. The district included the mostly affluent neighborhoods of College Point, Whitestone, Bayside, Little Neck, Douglaston, Floral Park, Beechhurst, Malba and Auburndale. Avella also served as a member of the New York City Council from 2002 to 2009, representing some of the same Queens neighborhoods in District 19. Avella is a former member of the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC), a group of Democratic state senators who allied themselves with Senate Republicans. He was also a losing candidate in the 2009 New York City mayoral election, the 2013 Queens Borough President election, and the 2017 New York City mayoral election.
On September 13, 2018, Avella was defeated in the State Senate Democratic primary by former New York City Comptroller John Liu. Avella continued his campaign on third-party lines and was again defeated by Liu in the general election.