He graduated from Irondequoit High School in 1978 and received a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Rochester in 1982.
In 1990, the GOP hired him to be the executive director of its county committee which led to his election to chairman in 1992,[3] a post he held for sixteen years.
Said Ben Smith of the New York Observer, "his record in Rochester is, in political terms, difficult to argue with: With only a slight Republican registration advantage, and working both as a paid political consultant and as county chairman, he took nearly all of the county’s important offices away from the ruling Democrats and built a formidable organization".
Minarik refused, calling this "just the latest Dean scream, and stating that the Democrats would be wise to take action on members like Lynne Stewart, rather than attacking me.
In June 2006, the State Republican Committee proceeded to nominate a conservative slate of candidates not favored by Minarik, including Gubernatorial nominee John Faso.
This included losses to Governor Eliot L. Spitzer and State Comptroller Alan Hevesi; both of whom would later resign their offices in disgrace.