Frank Padavan

Frank Padavan (born October 31, 1934, in Brooklyn, New York) is an engineer and was a Republican New York state senator representing District 11, located in Queens County. His district included the communities of Queens Village, Flushing, Bayside, Whitestone, Douglaston, Little Neck, College Point, Bellerose, Hollis, Jamaica Estates, Floral Park, and Glen Oaks. Padavan lost re-election on November 2, 2010 to Democrat Tony Avella and conceded on November 8, 2010.

Padavan attended Newtown High School in Elmhurst, New York. He received his undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute in 1956, and went on to receive a Master's in Business Administration from New York University in 1963. Between 1955 and 1968, he worked as an engineer at Westinghouse Electric Corporation.

Padavan spent 30 years as a reserve member of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, attaining the rank of Colonel. During his military career, Padavan served as commanding officer of the 411th Engineer Brigade and chief of staff, 77th ARCOM, headquarters for New York State's Army Reserve. He is a graduate of the US Army Command General and Staff College and completed the Defense Strategy Course.

In 1968, Padavan was appointed Deputy Commissioner of the New York City Department of Buildings, a position in which he remained until his election to the State Senate in 1972. He was a member of the New York State Senate from 1973 to 2010, sitting in the 180th, 181st, 182nd, 183rd, 184th, 185th, 186th, 187th, 188th, 189th, 190th, 191st, 192nd, 193rd, 194th, 195th, 196th, 197th and 198th New York State Legislatures.

In the November 4, 2008 election, Padavan faced a strong challenge from City Councilman James Gennaro. Preliminary election results showed Padavan with a 723-vote lead over his challenger. Following a machine recount, the margin narrowed slightly. As of late-December 2008, over 8,000 absentee and emergency ballots were being counted by the N.Y.C. Board of Elections office in Forest Hills. Attorneys for both candidates were on hand monitoring the recount, initiating challenges of ballots they did not believe met legal requirements to be counted. Controversy ensued when Padavan's backers began to challenge the residency of a number of students at St. John's University, claiming that they were improperly registered as voters in the 11th Senate District. On February 5, 2009, a New York State Judge (in Queens County) ruled that Padavan's 480 vote lead would stand and shortly thereafter, his opponent conceded.

Padavan voted against same-sex marriage legislation on December 2, 2009, and the bill was defeated.

In 2010, Padavan was defeated for re-election by Tony Avella.

Frank Padavan currently resides in Bellerose, New York. A widower, he has two adult children: Scott and Alison.