PALADINO SELECTS TOM OGNIBENE, QUEENS CONSEVATIVE, AS LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR CANDIDATE
(BUFFALO, NY) – Buffalo businessman Carl Paladino, Republican candidate for Governor of New York, announced today he has selected Tom Ognibene of Queens as his candidate for Lieutenant Governor. A well-known New York City native, Ognibene is an aggressive debater, a defender of the Republican Party and was the conservative conscience of the New York City Council for a decade.
“Tom Ognibene is a strong conservative with experience running a fiscally-sound government responsible to the taxpayers it serves,” Paladino said. “He has shown he is not afraid to speak his mind, which reflects his strong character and integrity.”
Ognibene ran for Mayor of New York City as a conservative in 2005 after serving in the District 30 City Council seat from 1992 to 2001. He served as Minority Leader of the New York City Council before retiring due to term limits.
“Tom is not prepackaged or reserved, much like me. He has spent his life in public service giving voice to the middle-class and blue-collar voters who feel left out of the system,” Paladino said. “His connections with the New York City Mayor’s office and his hands-on experience with the governmental process will make him an invaluable partner in the Governor’s office.”
“I am pleased to join with Carl Paladino as we lead the people’s crusade to take back Albany from the ruling class,” Ognibene said. “Carl and I are cut from the same cloth and we will fight to reclaim this state for New York’s browbeaten taxpayers.”
Ognibene served as Counsel to the New York State Senate Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs, the Senate Veteran’s Advisory Council and Counsel to the New York State Senate Committee on Consumer Protection. In 1998, Governor Pataki appointed him to the New York State Housing and Building Codes Council where he was instrumental in developing a uniform statewide code.
For 25 years, Ognibene has been an active administrator and a member of the Board of Trustees of Christ the King Regional High School. He served as Executive Vice Chairman and Executive Director of the Queens County Republican Party as well as Law Chairman of the Queens County Conservative Party. Ognibene is a life-long New Yorker, born in Morningside Heights. His mother, Josephine, was a New York City schoolteacher and his father, Morris, was a painting contractor. A graduate of the New York City Public School system, he graduated from C.W. Post College in 1966, served in the United States Army from 1967 to 1970 and graduated from Brooklyn Law School in 1974. A resident of Queens, he has been married for 43 years to his wife Margaret, a former New York City junior high school teacher.
Carl Paladino, a successful Western New York real estate developer and attorney, declared his candidacy for Governor of New York in Buffalo in April. He and Ognibene are petitioning their way into the Republican Primary and canvassing also to create a Tea Party-oriented line. For more information on where Carl Paladino stands on the issues, please visit www.paladinoforthepeople.com.