Israel, Steve, 1958-

Steven J. Israel (born May 30, 1958) is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he notably served as the U.S. Representative from New York's 2nd (2001-2013) and 3rd (2013-2017) congressional districts.

Born in Brooklyn and raised in Levittown, New York, he attended Nassau Community College and Syracuse University before earning a B.A. degree from George Washington University. From 1980 to 1983, he served as a staff member for U.S. Representative Richard Ottinger. In 1993, he was elected to the town council in Huntington, New York, in 1993. After Rick Lazio left his House seat to run for the United States Senate in 2000, Israel was elected to his seat, receiving 48% of the vote. He was reelected six times with relatively little difficulty, despite representing a swing district on paper. In his second term, Israel was tapped for a leadership position as Assistant Whip. In his third term, Israel was appointed to chair the House Democratic Caucus Task Force on Defense and Military, a group of 15 Democratic House members who reach out to the defense community and advise the House Democratic leadership on military policy. On January 5, 2016, Israel announced that he would not seek reelection in November 2016.

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