Roxanne Persaud (born March 1, 1966) is a Guyanese-American politician. She is a
Democrat and a member of the
New York Senate for the
19th district, which includes portions of
Canarsie,
East New York,
Brownsville,
Mill Basin,
Sheepshead Bay,
Bergen Beach,
Marine Park,
Flatlands,
Ocean Hill and
Starrett City in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
.
Life and career
A native of
Guyana
Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...
, Persaud immigrated with her family to
Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
as a young person. She is of
Dougla (
Indo-Guyanese and
Afro-Guyanese) heritage. She graduated from
Pace University with both a
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...
and
Master of Science
A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medici ...
in Education Administration before entering a career in education.
Persaud previously served as a school administrator with Pace University and
St. Francis College, Brooklyn, and also was involved with her
community board in
Canarsie, and has served on numerous boards and commissions for the community. In 2015, Persaud won the Democratic nomination to succeed
Alan Maisel in the
New York Assembly, and served from January to November 2015.
New York Senate
In 2015, Senator
John Sampson was found guilty of corruption and forced to resign. Persaud, then a first-term Assemblywoman, was chosen by the Kings County Democratic Party to succeed him, and easily won election that November to finish his term. In 2016, Persaud faced a primary challenge from
Mercedes Narcisse, who was backed by Assemblyman
Charles Barron and Councilwoman
Inez Barron. Persaud easily defeated Narcisse with over 75% of the vote. Persaud easily won re-election in 2016, 2018, and 2020.
Persaud was sworn in as state Senator on November 4, 2015. In 2019, with Democrats gaining the majority in the Senate, Persaud was named Chair of the Social Services Committee.
References
External links
Senator Roxanne Persaud''official site''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Persaud, Roxanne
Living people
Politicians from Brooklyn
Democratic Party New York (state) state senators
Women state legislators in New York (state)
Pace University alumni
People of Dougla descent
American politicians of Indian descent
Guyanese emigrants to the United States
21st-century American women politicians
African-American state legislators in New York (state)
Asian-American state legislators in New York (state)
1966 births
21st-century members of the New York State Legislature