Frank R. Pignanelli is an American politician who served in the

Utah House of Representatives The Utah House of Representatives is the lower house of the Utah State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Utah. The House is composed of 75 representatives elected from single member constituent districts. Each district cont ...

from 1987 through 1997, serving as minority leader and minority

whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...

for parts of that tenure. In 2003, he, unsuccessfully, ran for mayor of Salt Lake City.

Early life

Pignanelli is a native

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

resident, growing up in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

. In high school, Pignanelli partook in competitive debate. He received a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

degree from the

University of Utah College of Law The S.J. Quinney College of Law is a professional graduate law school at the University of Utah. It is located in Salt Lake City, Utah. The law school was originally called the University of Utah College of Law, changing to its current name on No ...

. Before being elected to the Utah House of Representatives, he was a lawyer at the

law firm Gustin, Adams, Kasting & Liapis. He as also the treasurer of the

Salt Lake County Salt Lake County is located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,185,238, making it the most populous county in Utah. Its county seat and largest city is Salt Lake City, the state capital. The co ...

Democratic Party and the chairman of the finance committee for the Young Lawyers Section of the

Utah State Bar Utah State Bar is the regulatory agency established by the Utah Supreme Court to regulate the practice of law in Utah. The Utah State Bar is funded by dues from members, Bar exam dues, continuing education fees, Pro Hac Vice fees, and revenue gene ...

. In 1985, he was the

campaign manager A campaign manager, campaign chairperson, or campaign director is an individual whose role is to coordinate a political campaign's spending, broad tactics, and hiring. They lead operations such as Campaign finance, fundraising, advertising, Opi ...

for Sydney Fonnesbeck's successful Salt Lake City Council campaign.

Utah House of Representatives

In 1986, he was elected to the

' 23rd district. He was reelected to the district in 1988 and 1990. In 1992 he was

redistricted Redistricting in the United States is the process of drawing electoral district boundaries. For the United States House of Representatives, and state legislatures, redistricting occurs after each ten-year census. The U.S. Constitution in Art ...

, and was elected to the 24th district. He would win reelection to this district in 1994. In November 1988, the Utah House of Representatives' Democratic caucus voted to make Pignanelli its party

for the then-upcoming 1989–1990 session, thus, selecting him to be the minority whip. In 1990, he was elected to the 24th district of the Utah House. He would be reelected to it. In late 1990, the Utah House of Representatives' Democratic caucus voted to make Pignanelli its party leader for the then-upcoming 1991–1992 session, thus, selecting him to serve as the minority leader. He would retain this position through the 1995–1996 session.

Subsequent career

In 2003, he unsuccessfully ran for mayor of Salt Lake City. Pignanelli is a partner at Salt Lake City based government relations firm Foxley & Pignanelli. He writes a weekly political column for the Deseret News. He currently serves as the Executive Director of th
National Association of Industrial Bankers
to champion innovative financial services for Americans by expanding access to credit, guaranteeing consumer choice, and providing unique banking services.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pignanelli, Frank R. Democratic Party members of the Utah House of Representatives Politicians from Salt Lake City Lawyers from Salt Lake City S.J. Quinney College of Law alumni Competitive debaters 20th-century members of the Utah Legislature Living people Year of birth missing (living people)