Joseph Sr. married Grace Paparella on January 8, 1939, and the couple settled in Orchard Hills in White Plains.

[6] DioGuardi specialized in federal and state taxation for non-profit organizations, as well as the tax economics of charitable giving.

The Democratic leaning district had a sizable minority population in the cities of Mount Vernon, Yonkers and New Rochelle.

[8] DioGuardi won re-election to a second term, defeating former U.S. Congresswoman Bella Abzug, who had relocated from Greenwich Village in Manhattan to Mount Vernon, 54%-45%.

[9][10] DioGuardi ran for re-election to a third term but lost to Nita Lowey, the Assistant Secretary of State of New York, 50%-47%.

Former Comptroller General of the United States Charles Bowsher later said in testimony before the U.S. Senate that since the enactment of the bill, "We have seen important progress in directly confronting serious financial management weaknesses.

He founded and co-chaired the Congressional Long Island Sound and Hudson River Caucuses, which secured substantial increases in federal support.

[29] Under Dioguardi's leadership, the AACL raised millions of dollars, arranged demonstrations, testified and passed resolutions in Congress promoting the issue of Kosovo Albanians, putting pressure on U.S.

[30] Dioguardi's influence over the Albanian American lobby later diminished with the formation of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK).

According to them, Dioguardi "hangs onto the Civic League in order to promote his own thinly veiled political ambitions" and "demand[s] that everything go through him, even the demonstrations".

[31] Still, political analyst Paul Hockenos noted in 2003 that "Dioguardi and the Albanian lobby as a whole still pack a formidable punch, even after the dust of the wars has settled.

According to its website, "the mission of Truth in Government is to strengthen our country's financial foundation by promoting accountability and transparency in Congressional spending and reporting.

On August 9, the New York Board of Elections officially certified DioGuardi's qualification for the September 14th GOP primary.

[35] During the campaign, DioGuardi attracted some press attention for his advocacy of Albanian rights and his claim that without his efforts, there would be no independent Kosovo.

"As a consultant, Joe was tasked with saving hospitals in New York from being shut down, but knew nothing of the schemes that were occurring behind the scenes," said his spokesman Brian Hummell, adding that his boss "has never seen the books.

His son John is a counselor at the Phoenix House, a national non-profit drug treatment organization on whose board Joseph has served since 1972.

His daughter Kara DioGuardi is a songwriter and artist who has appeared as a judge on the American Idol show, and has also been involved in Phoenix House.