Mary Varallo
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Mary Frascone Varallo (June 11, 1897 – November 27, 1979) was a Democratic politician from Philadelphia who served in the
Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...
and the
Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council is the legislative body of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. It is composed of 17 councilmembers: ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large from throughou ...
. Varallo was born Mary Frascone in
South Philadelphia South Philadelphia, nicknamed South Philly, is the section of Philadelphia bounded by South Street to the north, the Delaware River to the east and south, and the Schuylkill River to the west."." ''City of Philadelphia''. Retrieved November 8, ...
in 1897, the daughter of
Italian immigrants The Italian diaspora (, ) is the large-scale emigration of Italians from Italy. There were two major Italian diasporas in Italian history. The first diaspora began around 1880, two decades after the Unification of Italy, and ended in the 1920s ...
Agostino and Caterina Frascone. She graduated from
West Philadelphia High School West Philadelphia High School is a secondary school located in the West Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the intersection of 49th Street and Chestnut Street (Philadelphia), Chestnut Street. History 20th century The original ...
and later took classes at Peirce School of Business, the Charles Morris Price School of Advertising and Journalism,
Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist ministe ...
, the Pennsylvania School of Criminology, and the Leefson-Hille Conservatory. After marrying in 1921 to Alfred Varallo, she worked as a church organist. She and Alfred were married until her death in 1979, but never had any children. In addition to local Italian-American organizations, Varallo became involved in local Democratic Party politics in Philadelphia in the 1940s. She became the Democratic leader of the 36th ward in 1942 and was elected to the state House of Representatives in 1944, representing the multi-member 5th district along with Frank Lopez and former representative Anna M. Brancato. She sponsored a Woman's Equal Rights Bill that became law in 1945. The following election, in 1946, saw
Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
take back the three seats, but Varallo returned to the legislature in 1949 along with fellow Democrats Thomas Peta and Louis Amarando. Varallo won re-election for the next five terms. She served as chair of the House Welfare committee and, in 1959, became Minority Whip, the first woman to hold the position. Later that year, the Philadelphia Democratic City Committee endorsed Varallo for an open at-large seat on the
Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council is the legislative body of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. It is composed of 17 councilmembers: ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large from throughou ...
and she won nomination easily in the May primary. In the general election that November, Varallo placed fourth among the five Democrats elected to the at-large seats. In an editorial, the ''
Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', often referred to simply as ''The Inquirer'', is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded on June 1, 1829, ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is the third-longest continuously operating da ...
'' praised Varallo's election, calling her "capable," and noting that "unlike most of her fellow Philadelphia Democrats in the House, she is a worker." Council President James Tate assigned her to lead the Public Health Committee. Later that year, she was a delegate to the
1960 Democratic National Convention The 1960 Democratic National Convention was held in Los Angeles, California, on July 11–15, 1960. It nominated Senator John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts for president and Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas for vice president. In ...
and was a presidential elector for
John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...
. In 1963, Varallo was reelected, as were all of the other at-large members of City Council. The election in 1967 saw a divide in the Philadelphia Democratic Party as Mayor Tate ran for nomination to a second term against the organization choice,
Alexander Hemphill Alexander Hemphill (May 22, 1921 – January 30, 1986) was a Democratic lawyer and politician from Philadelphia who served as City Controller from 1958 to 1968. After service in World War II and graduation from the University of Pennsylvania Law ...
. The tumult from Tate's victory spilled over into council races, as Varallo lost the primary for a third term, as did fellow Democratic at-large incumbent Leon Kolankiewicz. In 1968, Varallo ran for Congress but lost a four-way primary to the incumbent Democrat, James A. Byrne. That same year she was considered among possible nominees to the post of
Treasurer of the United States The treasurer of the United States is an officer in the United States Department of the Treasury who serves as the custodian and trustee of the federal government's collateral assets and the supervisor of the department's currency and coinage pr ...
, but was not selected. With that, she retired from politics. Varallo died at Shore Memorial Hospital in
Somers Point, New Jersey Somers Point is a city (New Jersey), city situated on the Jersey Shore that is the oldest settlement in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It was settled by Europeans in 1693 and was incorporated as a ...
, on November 27, 1979, at the age of 82, and was buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in
Yeadon, Pennsylvania Yeadon is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. It borders the city of Philadelphia. The population was 11,443 at the 2010 census. Geography Yeadon is located in eastern Delaware County at (39.932862, -75.251540). It is bor ...
.


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Books * Articles * * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Varallo, Mary 1897 births 1979 deaths American people of Italian descent Burials at Holy Cross Cemetery (Yeadon, Pennsylvania) Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Philadelphia City Council members Women state legislators in Pennsylvania 1960 United States presidential electors Women city councillors in Pennsylvania 20th-century American women politicians 20th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly