Vito John Fossella Jr. (born March 9, 1965)[1] is an American politician serving as the Staten Island Borough President since 2022.

A Staten Island native, Fossella initially took office in 1997 after winning a special election held to replace the resigning Susan Molinari.

After a DUI arrest in Alexandria, Virginia on May 1, 2008, it was discovered that he was living with Laura Fay, a retired US Air Force lieutenant colonel, while Fossella was married.

[5] His father, Vito John Fossella Sr., served in various appointed positions in the city administrations of Democratic Mayors Ed Koch and Abraham Beame, then became a successful construction engineer.

[6] Fossella, the fourth of seven children, was a basketball player at Monsignor Farrell High School, where he got his first political experience in the student council.

He attended Iona College in New Rochelle, then transferred to the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in economics in 1987.

Fossella's political career began in April 1994, when he won a special election to the New York City Council, representing Staten Island's South Shore and Mid-Island section.

However, Barbaro performed poorly on Staten Island, and Fossella won by 26 points—enough to win a fourth full term with 59% of the vote districtwide.

[14] Steve Harrison hoped to run against Fossella again in the 2008 election, but New York City Council member Domenic Recchia also began seeking the Democratic nomination.

In August 2002, appearing on CNN's Crossfire, Fossella argued for partly privatizing Social Security and allowing some of the funds to be placed on Wall Street investments.

"[18][better source needed] In June 2003, Fossella wrote an op-ed for the Washington Times, in which he said, "The claims that progress is too slow, the situation unstable and the United States lacks the expertise to get the job done does not reflect reality on the ground in Baghdad, Kirkuk and beyond.

In 2007, Fossella voted for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, a bill nationally prohibiting job discrimination based on sexual orientation.

[22][better source needed] After the 2007 State of the Union Address, Fossella crossed the aisle to join with Senator Hillary Clinton in 2007 to raise awareness of health issues suffered by those who worked at the World Trade Center site on and after 9/11.

We continue urging the White House to provide adequate funding in the 2008 budget to help all those who are sick or injured as a result of the terror attacks.