Molinaro was first elected to public office at the age of 18 in 1994, when he was elected to the Village of Tivoli'sBoard of Trustees. In 1995, he became the youngest mayor in the United States when he was elected Mayor of Tivoli. Molinaro was re-elected mayor five times, and also served in the Dutchess County Legislature.
In 2006, Molinaro was elected to represent the 103rd District in the New York State Assembly. Molinaro served in the Assembly until 2011. In January 2011, at the recommendation of Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb, Governor Andrew Cuomo appointed Molinaro to serve on the Governor's Mandate Relief Redesign Team.
Dutchess County Executive
Molinaro announced his bid to succeed twenty-year Dutchess County Executive William Steinhaus in May 2011. The campaign was endorsed by the county's Republican, Conservative, and Independence parties. On June 3, Beekman supervisor Dan French was nominated as the Assemblyman's Democratic challenger. Molinaro prevailed on November 8, 2011 with 62% of the vote. Molinaro was sworn into office on January 1, 2012. In 2015, Molinaro was re-elected to a second term, defeating Democratic challenger Diane Jablonski by a significant margin. In 2014, Molinaro was awarded the Pace University Land Use Law Center’s Groundbreaker’s Award. As County Executive, Molinaro spearheaded a 2015 initiative called "Think Differently" for people with disabilities; he also appointed a Deputy Commissioner of Special Needs in 2016. In 2015, Molinaro was elected Second Vice President of the New York State Association of Counties.
In March 2018, Molinaro informed Republican leaders that he would run for Governor of New York in the 2018 election. Molinaro announced his candidacy on April 2, 2018 and was endorsed by the New York Conservative Party on April 13. On May 23, 2018, the Republican Party unanimously nominated Molinaro as its candidate for Governor of New York at its state convention, three days after the Reform Party endorsed Molinaro for their gubernatorial ticket. Molinaro's running mate was Julie Killian, a former Rye City Councilwoman and State Senate candidate. While he was described as a moderate during the campaign, Molinaro said in a March 2018 interview that he considered himself a communitarian. Molinaro lost the 2018 gubernatorial election, garnering 36.8% of the vote.
Personal life
Molinaro and his wife, Corinne Adams, reside in Red Hook, New York. Molinaro had two children with his first wife; he and Corinne have one child and, as of November 2018, were expecting another. Molinaro's daughter, Abigail, is on the autism spectrum. Molinaro's father passed away from COVID-19 on April 10, 2020.
