Republican, Conservative, and Independence parties. On June 3, Beekman supervisor Dan French won the Democratic nomination. Molinaro won the November 8, 2011, election with 62% of the vote. He was sworn into office on January 1, 2012. In 2015, Molinaro was reelected, defeating Democratic nominee Diane Jablonski, 30,181 votes to 17,539. Molinaro won a third term in 2019, defeating Democratic nominee Joseph Ruggiero, 41,285 votes to 29,293. In 2014, Molinaro was awarded the Pace University Land Use Law Center's Groundbreaker's Award. As county executive, he 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. 2018 gubernatorial election In March 2018, Molinaro informed Republican leaders that he would run for governor of New York in the 2018 election. He announced his candidacy on April 2, 2018, and was endorsed by the New York Conservative Party on April 13. On May 23, the Republican Party unanimously nominated Molinaro for governor at its state convention, three days after the Reform Party endorsed Molinaro for its 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, explaining that he believed leaders need to bring together community members of different perspectives to solve the problems they face. Molinaro lost to incumbent Governor Andrew Cuomo in the 2018 election, garnering 36% of the vote. U.S. House of Representatives Elections 2022 special On September 21, 2021, Molinaro announced his candidacy for Congress in New York's 19th congressional district. Ten days after this announcement, his campaign reported that it had raised at least $350,000. A special election to fill the 19th congressional district seat was held in August 2022. The seat was left vacant following Antonio Delgado's appointment as Lieutenant Governor of New York. Molinaro lost the special election to Democrat Pat Ryan. 2022 general Molinaro was also the Republican nominee in the November 2022 general election in the 19th district. In that election, he faced Democratic nominee Josh Riley. Molinaro campaigned as a moderate, committing to protect full access to abortion in New York and LGBTQ+ rights. He narrowly won the House seat with 49.9% of the vote.