Prior to his election to the New York State Assembly in 2004, Ignizio served as the
Chief of Staff to former
Staten Island City Councilmember
Stephen Fiala, and then as the Chief of Staff of City Councilmember
Andrew J. Lanza. In 2004, he launched a successful campaign to unseat Assemblymember
Robert Straniere, who had held this seat since 1981. Even though he had not earned the support of the
Conservative Party of New York State, which usually cross-endorses Republican nominees, he won the general election, defeating Straniere, who was running on a third-party line; Mario Bruno Jr., the Conservative endorsee; and
Emanuele Innamorato, his main
Democratic Party opponent. During his two years as an assemblyman, Ignizio served at various times as Ranking Minority Member of the Social Services Committee, Ranking Minority Member of the Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Committee and Ranking Minority Member of the Corporations, Authorities and Commissions Committee. During his tenure as the chief Republican on the Corporations Committee, the committee held a series of highly public hearings on public authorities in the state, along with issues surrounding electricity delivery in the city. These investigations and hearings were initiated by the committee's chairman,
Richard Brodsky of Westchester. In addition to his committee appointments, Ignizio served as Chairman of the Assembly Republican Review Committee. In January 2007, he announced his candidacy in a
special election for
New York City Council member for the
51st district. The special election was held to fill the Council vacancy of
Andrew Lanza, who resigned his seat when he was elected to the
New York State Senate in November 2006. On February 20, 2007, Ignizio was elected with 74 percent of the vote against Democrat Emmanuele Innamorato. In September 2007, he was named one of
City Hall's "40 under 40" for being a young influential member of New York City politics. As a councilman, Ignizio serves on the Education Committee, the Environmental Protection Committee, the Land Use Committee, the Standards and Ethics Committee and the Transportation Committee. In addition to serving on the Planning Subcommittee, he is a member of the Budget Negotiation Team for the Council. In May 2015, he announced that he would be leaving the City Council to take on a role as head of
Staten Island Catholic Charities. In December 2021, he was named as the Deputy Executive Director of the New York City
Board of Elections. ==Personal life==