A resident of Fort Lee,[1] Albanese was elected to the State Assembly in the 1965 Democratic landslide, running at-large in Bergen County.
[citation needed] In 1969, Albanese ran again for the State Assembly, this time without the support of the Bergen County Democratic Organization.
[3] Albanese sought the Democratic nomination for governor in 1973, supporting the legalization of marijuana and advocated an end to New Jersey's prohibition of abortion.
[4] During the campaign, he complained that the media was more interested in writing about his ownership of several bars in Bergen County and in New York City that were "frequented by homosexuals" than they were in covering his proposals.
His brothers were politically active in Palisades Park including Vincent, a Republican, and Mario, the Democratic Committee Chair.