Anthony Weiner

Weiner was born in Brooklyn, New York. He is the middle son of Mort Weiner, a lawyer, and his wife, Frances (née Finkelstein), a public high school math teacher. He and his family lived for a time in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn. Weiner attended elementary school at P.S. 39 The Henry Bristow School. Weiner's interests turned towards politics; he became active in student government and was named most effective student senator. After he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science in 1985, Weiner joined the staff of then–United States Representative and current Senator Charles Schumer. He worked in Schumer's Washington, D.C., office for three years, then transferred to the district office in Brooklyn in 1988, when Schumer encouraged him to become involved in local politics. == New York City Council (1992–1998) ==

After working for Schumer for six years, Weiner got his first chance at political office in 1991 when the New York City Council was expanded from 35 to 51 seats. Weiner was considered a long-shot because he faced strong competition in the Democratic primary elections from two well-connected candidates. Weiner narrowly won the primary, besting Michael Garson by slightly more than 200 votes. Controversy ensued in the last weeks of the campaign after Weiner's campaign anonymously spread leaflets around the district that had alleged ties between Cohen and the so-called "Jackson-Dinkins agenda"; the leaflets referred to the Crown Heights riots earlier in the year, after which white residents had seen Jesse Jackson, who became notorious for his earlier remarks about New York City as "Hymietown", and then-mayor David Dinkins as having been beholden to the predominantly African-American rioters and therefore endangering whites. Weiner prevailed in the general election. Weiner served on the City Council from 1992 to 1998. During his City Council tenure, Weiner initiated programs to address quality of life concerns. He also started a program to put at-risk and troubled teens to work cleaning up graffiti, and he backed development plans that helped revive the historic Sheepshead Bay area. == U.S. House of Representatives (1999–2011) ==

In 1998, Weiner ran for Congress from New York's 9th congressional district. The heavily Democratic 9th district was represented by Weiner's mentor, Chuck Schumer, who opted to run for the U.S. Senate that year and prevailed. He went on to serve in the House of Representatives until 2011, Domestic issues , 2009. Weiner was critical of the 2009 Stupak-Pitts Amendment to the Affordable Care Act, which prohibited the use of taxpayer funds for abortion. Weiner called the amendment "unnecessary and divisive" and stated that it would prevent health insurers from offering abortion coverage regardless of whether an individual used federal funds to purchase an insurance plan. Foreign policy In 2002, Weiner voted to give President George W. Bush the authority to use military force against Iraq. In May 2006, Weiner attempted to bar the Palestinian delegation from entering the United Nations. He added that the delegation "should start packing their little Palestinian terrorist bags", and went on to claim that Human Rights Watch, The New York Times, and Amnesty International are all biased against Israel. On July 29, 2007, Weiner and Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) objected to a $20-billion arms deal that the Bush administration negotiated with Saudi Arabia because they didn't want to provide "sophisticated weapons to a country that they believe has not done enough to stop terrorism", noting that 15 of the 19 hijackers in the September 11 attacks were Saudis. Weiner made the announcement outside of the Saudi Arabian consulate in Washington, D.C., stating, "We need to send a crystal clear message to the Saudi Arabian government that their tacit approval of terrorism can't go unpunished." The two intended to use a provision of the Arms Export Control Act to review the deal and pass a Joint Resolution of Disapproval. Weiner and several other members of Congress later criticized the Obama administration's proposal to sell over $60 billion in arms to Saudi Arabia. He said: "Saudi Arabia is not deserving of our aid, and by arming them with advanced American weaponry we are sending the wrong message", and described Saudi Arabia as having a "history of financing terrorism" and teaching "hatred of Christians and Jews" to its schoolchildren. Management style In July 2008, The New York Times characterized Weiner as an intense and demanding boss who required constant contact from his staff, frequently yelled, and occasionally threw office furniture in anger. As a result of Weiner's actions, the Times reported that he had one of the highest staff turnover rates of any member of Congress. Specifically, the Times stated that Weiner had lost three chiefs of staff within an 18-month period. Weiner admitted he pushed his aides hard, but said that his speaking at a high decibel level was part of his background and style. Though some former employees were critical of his supervisory practices, others praised him for his intense involvement in constituent concerns and readiness to fight for New York City. Traffic tickets A 2010 license plate check by the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call showed that Weiner's vehicles were among several owned by members of Congress that had unpaid tickets. Weiner's past due fines, which spanned three years and totaled more than $2,000, were among the highest uncovered by Roll Call and were paid in full shortly after publication of the article. On June 13, 2011, the New York Daily News reported that one of Weiner's vehicles, though it had been issued valid plates, was displaying expired plates that had been issued to another one of his vehicles. == Other political campaigns ==

2005 New York City mayoral election Weiner sought the Democratic nomination to run for New York City mayor in 2005, vying against three other candidates. He had a three-part pitch to voters that included criticizing sitting Mayor Michael Bloomberg for his top-down style of management and promising a more democratic approach; against "passivity in City Hall" and for getting more federal money for the city; and a series of ideas on how to get the city to work better. He presented a book of 50 "Real Solutions" and among his policy proposals were fixes for the health care and educational systems. 2009 New York City mayoral election Weiner appeared to be a candidate for mayor again in 2009. 2013 New York City mayoral election In an interview with The New York Times Magazine published online on April 10, 2013, Weiner said he would like to "ask people to give me a second chance" and was considering a run for mayor. He added that, "it's now or maybe never for me." In an interview on April 11, Rep. Keith Ellison endorsed Weiner, saying that he would love to see him become mayor of New York. Weiner announced his intent to run for mayor on a YouTube video on May 21, 2013. Weiner's platform for candidacy was summarized in "Keys to the City: 64 Ideas to Keep New York City the Capital of the Middle Class". During his mayoral campaign, Weiner became the subject of new sexting allegations. He acknowledged on July 23, 2013, that he had sent sexual messages to at least three women in 2012. Once this information became public, there were calls for Weiner to drop out of the mayoral race; however, Weiner opted to continue his campaign. On July 27, 2013, Danny Kedem, Weiner's campaign chief, announced his resignation. Following the new sexting scandal, Weiner lost his lead in a Democratic primary poll. On September 10, 2013, Weiner lost the Democratic mayoral primary, winning only 4.9% of the vote. 2025 New York City Council election In 2025, Weiner announced his candidacy in the 2025 New York City Council election for District 2. He ran against New York State Assemblyman Harvey Epstein and three other Democrats (Allie Ryan, Andrea Gordillo, and Sarah Batchu). The district was represented by Democrat Carlina Rivera, who was term-limited. On July 1, 2025, he lost the Democratic primary after being eliminated in the third round of ranked choice voting. Unofficial data indicate that he finished in fourth place with 10.3% of the vote. == Sexting scandals, prosecution, and guilty plea ==

On May 27, 2011, Weiner used his public Twitter account to send a link to a woman who was following him on the social media platform. The link contained a sexually explicit photograph of himself. Weiner further acknowledged that he had sent sexual messages to at least three women in 2012. On July 23, 2013, Weiner held a press conference with his wife, Huma Abedin, in which he announced that he would continue his campaign. Weiner went on to lose the 2013 Democratic mayoral primary. The New York Times reported the next day that Weiner and his wife Huma Abedin intended to separate. Abedin announced her intention by stating, "After long and painful consideration and work on my marriage, I have made the decision to separate from my husband. Anthony and I remain devoted to doing what is best for our son, who is the light of our life. During this difficult time, I ask for respect for our privacy." In September 2016, claims were published that Weiner had engaged in sexting with a 15-year-old girl from North Carolina, and devices owned by Weiner were seized as part of an investigation into this incident. Emails that were pertinent to the Hillary Clinton email controversy were discovered on Weiner's laptop; this discovery prompted FBI Director James Comey to reopen that investigation several days before the 2016 US presidential election. Comey announced his decision in a letter to Congress. An article by The New York Times about the Comey letter was entitled, "Emails in Anthony Weiner Inquiry Jolt Hillary Clinton's Campaign". Clinton, who went on to lose the 2016 election, later asserted that if the election had been held prior to the release of Comey's letter, she would have prevailed. Analyst Nate Silver opined that the Comey letter probably cost Clinton the election. In 2017, Z. Byron Wolf of CNN wrote:Anthony Weiner sexted a 15-year-old and Donald Trump won the White House. One didn’t cause the other, but several long-running narratives exploded together in a way that ultimately and in hindsight sent Hillary Clinton’s campaign floundering and gave Donald Trump’s new hope in the waning days of the election. There is an undeniable through-line between the investigation into Weiner’s proclivity to sending lewd message via text, on this occasion victimizing a teenage student, and Trump’s 2016 victory. On May 19, 2017, The New York Times reported in its online edition that Weiner had surrendered to the FBI that morning. He pled guilty to a single charge of transferring obscene material to a minor. Under the agreement, Weiner faced a sentence of 21 to 27 months in federal prison and would be required to register as a sex offender. At his sentencing hearing on September 25, 2017, presiding judge Denise Cote sentenced Weiner to 21 months in prison, beginning on November 6, 2017, On November 6, 2017, Weiner reported to Federal Medical Center, Devens in Ayer, Massachusetts to begin his 21-month sentence. After getting about three months deducted from his sentence for good behavior, Weiner was released from prison on February 17, 2019, and sent to a halfway house. He was released from a halfway house on May 14, 2019. Weiner is registered as a sex offender. == Post-congressional private sector work ==

In July 2011 (less than a month after he left Congress), Weiner created the consulting firm Woolf-Weiner Associates. He advised over a dozen companies that included electronic medical records providers and biofuel firms. He worked with Covington & Burling, an international law firm. According to 2012 public disclosures, his work helped increase his combined family income to $496,000. Weiner argued that despite contacting members of Congress on behalf of his clients, his work did not meet the legal definition of lobbying. This was based on the so-called "Daschle Loophole" in the Lobbying Disclosure Act, which requires only those who spend more than 20% of their time lobbying to register as lobbyists. The Sunlight Foundation criticized Weiner for stealth lobbying and falling under the aforementioned "Daschle Loophole". The public never learned of his lobbying work until two years later, when his nondisclosure agreements expired. From July to September 2015, Weiner worked for MWW Group, a PR firm in New York City as a part-time consultant to serve on the company's board of advisors. On August 29, 2016, the New York Daily News said it would no longer carry Weiner's columns, which included his writings on New York City politics. On the same day, television channel NY1 said Weiner would not be reprising his contributor role on any of its shows. Weiner served as CEO of IceStone, a Brooklyn-based kitchen-countertop company. He left his role as CEO in August 2021, as the company transitioned to a worker-owned cooperative. After leaving IceStone, he began working for WABC radio, where he co-hosts a weekly live show with Curtis Sliwa and records a weekly podcast. == Personal life ==

, in 2010 In 2009, Weiner became engaged to Huma Abedin, a long-time personal aide to Hillary Clinton, and they married in July 2010, with former president Bill Clinton officiating. Abedin is a practicing Muslim of Indian and Pakistani descent. In December 2011, Abedin gave birth to a son. In August 2016, Abedin announced that she was separating from Weiner. Abedin and Weiner withdrew their divorce case from court in January 2018, saying they decided to settle the divorce privately in order to spare their six-year-old son further embarrassment. Abedin and Weiner finalized their divorce in early 2025. Weiner's older brother, Seth, was 39 years old when he was killed by a hit-and-run driver in 2000. == Media appearances ==

In 2013, Weiner and Abedin allowed filmmakers full access to his mayoral campaign. In 2016, the resulting documentary, Weiner, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. In 2013, a production called The Weiner Monologues premiered at the Access Theater. Directed by Jonathan Harper Schlieman, the show was based on media coverage of Weiner's sexting scandal. In 2014, he had a cameo appearance in an Alpha House episode. He also appeared in the 2015 film Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!, in which he portrays a NASA executive. == Electoral history ==

2013 New York City mayoral primary 2025 New York City Council election, District 2 Democratic Primary == See also ==