Eliot Engel - WikiHQ

Eliot Lance Engel (; February 18, 1947 – April 10, 2026) was an American politician who served as a U.S. representative from New York from 1989 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented a district covering portions of the north Bronx and southern Westchester County.

Engel won his first congressional election in 1988, defeating Mario Biaggi in the Democratic primary. In 2019, following Democratic gains in the 2018 elections, Engel was named chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; he previously was its ranking member from 2013. In 2020, after 16 terms in office, Engel was defeated in the Democratic primary by middle school principal Jamaal Bowman.

Early life and education

Engel was born in the Bronx on February 18, 1947, the son of Sylvia (née Bleend) and Philip Engel, an ironworker. His grandparents, of Ukrainian Jewish background, In February 1987, he earned a Juris Doctor from New York Law School.

Early career

New York State Assembly

After working as a social studies teacher at IS 174 in The Bronx and guidance counselor in other schools, Engel entered politics. In 1977, Engel entered the special election for a seat in the New York State Assembly after the incumbent Democrat Alan Hochberg was forced to resign. He was the Liberal Party nominee in the special election, and on March 1, 1977, he won by 103 votes, defeating Democratic nominee Ted Weinstein and Republican nominee Arlene Siegel. However, in early June, after a hot mic gaffe by Engel, where he insisted on speaking at a press conference and said, "If I didn't have a primary, I wouldn't care", Biaggi withdrew her support of Engel and instead endorsed Bowman. In a mid-June poll, Engel trailed Bowman by ten percentage points and, after the election, with early and election day votes counted, Bowman led Engel by almost 12,000 votes, 61.8% to 34.9%. Absentee ballots were scheduled to be counted on June 30, 2020, though some sources called the race for Bowman before the counting of absentee ballots. After the absentee ballots were counted, Bowman's lead was 55.4%-40.6%, or 13,218 votes. The race was called for Bowman on July 17, 2020, with the New York State Board of Elections certifying the results on August 6, 2020.

Committee assignments

Committee on Energy and Commerce
Subcommittee on Energy and Power
Subcommittee on Health
Committee on Foreign Affairs (chair, 116th Congress) (Ranking Member, 113th, 114th, 115th Congress)

;Party leadership

Vice Chair of the Democratic Task Force on Homeland Security
Assistant Democratic Whip

Caucus memberships

Arab-Israeli Peace Accord Monitoring Group
Congressional Albanian Caucus
Congressional Caucus on Global Road Safety
Congressional Hellenic-Israeli Alliance
Ad Hoc Congressional Committee for Irish Affairs
Democratic Leadership Council
Democratic Task Force on Health
House Oil and National Security Caucus (Founder and co-chair)
Israel Allies Caucus
New Democrat Coalition

Political positions

Healthcare reform

A strong supporter of single payer healthcare, Engel supported quality access to health care, and referred to himself as pro-choice "all the way".

Western Hemisphere Subcommittee

As Chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, Engel called for stronger U.S. relations with Latin America and the Caribbean. His Subcommittee held hearings on issues such as the crisis in Haiti, poverty, and inequality in Latin America.

Engel pushed for increased funding for emergency relief in Haiti, and for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) of Haitian nationals in the U.S. In 1996, The Washington Post wrote, "The Kosovo cause has been kept alive in Washington by a small group of congressmen led by Rep. Eliot L. Engel (D-N.Y.)" Engel received the Paraskevaides Award in May 2007, given to those who have utilized ancient Hellenic values to contribute to the nations and people of Cyprus and America and to Hellenism in the modern world. After revelations that intelligence provided to Congress was partially unreliable, and the subsequent problems faced after Saddam Hussein was deposed, Engel came to regret his decision to support the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and consistently voted in favor of gradual withdrawal. He met with anti-war activists, and in 2008, he publicly called for the closing of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.

Irish affairs

In 2007, Engel became a co-chair of the Congressional Ad Hoc Committee on Irish Affairs. He supported the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, and aided Irish nationals facing deportation from the United States.

Iran nuclear deal

In August 2015, Engel announced that he would oppose the Iran nuclear deal in Congress, saying, "The answers I've received simply don't convince me that this deal will keep a nuclear weapon out of Iran's hands, and may in fact strengthen Iran's position as a destabilizing and destructive influence across the Middle East."

In June 2020, Engel appeared at a press conference to address the unrest resulting from the murder of George Floyd. When Bronx Borough President Rubén Díaz Jr. indicated there was not enough time for Engel to address the press, Engel responded, "If I didn't have a primary, I wouldn't care." Diaz immediately rebuked Engel, saying, "We're not politicizing. Everybody's got a primary, you know?"

Grades and recognition

Engel received the National Association of Public Hospitals Safety Net Award in 2007 primarily for the introduction of The Public and Teaching Hospital Preservation Act.

Personal life and death

Eliot Engel and his wife, Patricia Ennis Engel, had three children.

Electoral history

References

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External links

Quotes at BrainyQuote.com