On February 20, 1990, Bonacic was elected to the
New York State Assembly, to fill the vacancy caused by the election of
Mary M. McPhillips as Orange County Executive. Bonacic was re-elected four times and remained in the Assembly until 1998, sitting in the
188th,
189th,
190th,
191st and
192nd New York State Legislatures. In November 1998, he was elected to the
New York State Senate. Bonacic, a Republican, was the Chair of the Senate Racing, Gaming, and Wagering Committee. He sponsored a bill that would legalize online poker. He supported the opening of a casino in Sullivan County, New York. While Bonacic cast a procedural vote against a 2013 bill that would have expanded abortion rights, he expressed support for the Reproductive Health Act in 2016. At a January 25, 2016 gathering of abortion advocates in Albany, the Senator commented, "'Both my daughter and my bride of 50 years believe in pro-choice and we should never deprive women of access of health care that they choose and their medical providers say is best for them.'" In 2015, Bonacic introduced a bill to legalize physician-assisted suicide. In 2011, Bonacic voted against allowing same-sex marriage in New York in a roll-call vote on the Marriage Equality Act, which passed in a close 33-29 vote. On May 6, 2018, Bonacic announced that he would not seek re-election in November 2018. ==See also==