Juan Ardila

American politician

Juan Ardila

Member of the New York State Assembly from the 37th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 1, 2023
Preceded by	Catherine Nolan

Personal details
Born	Elmhurst, Queens, New York, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Education	Fordham University (BA) New York University (MPA)
Signature
Website	Official website

Juan Ardila is an American politician who is a member of the New York State Assembly for the 37th district. Elected in November 2022, he assumed office on January 1, 2023.

Early life and education

Born in Elmhurst, Ardila was raised in Maspeth, Queens. After graduating from Archbishop Molloy High School, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Fordham University and a Master of Public Administration from the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University.^[1]

Career

From 2015 to 2017, Ardila served as the office manager and scheduler for City Councilman Brad Lander.^[2] He was also a youth tutor for the International Rescue Committee. From 2017 to 2019, he served as an expansion consultant for the New York City Department of Education. In 2019, he joined the Legal Aid Society as a program coordinator.^[3] Ardila was elected to the New York State Assembly in November 2022.^[4]

Controversies

In 2021 while running for a City Council seat in Queens, Ardila faced scrutiny over racist and homophobic remarks made on social media. He placed second in the Democratic primary to incumbent Robert Holden.^[5]

In March 2023, Ardila was accused of sexual assault by two women and there were calls for Ardila to resign,^[6] including from Governor Kathy Hochul.^[7]

References

^ Parry, Bill (2022-02-17). "Ardila announces campaign to replace Assemblywoman Cathy Nolan". qns.com. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
^ Tomao, Pete (2022-06-30). "Juan Ardila: 'When the left organizes, we win'". City & State NY. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
^ Andres, Czarinna (2022-06-29). "Progressive Candidate Juan Ardila Wins 37th Assembly Seat". Sunnyside Post. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
^ "Juan Ardila". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
^ Campanile, Carl (2021-04-26). "Council candidate apologizes for racist, anti-gay online posts". nypost.com. Retrieved 2021-04-30.
^ Schwach, Ryan (March 13, 2023). "Two women accuse Queens official of sexual assault at a 2015 party". Queens Daily Eagle. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
^ Campanile, Carl; Williams, Zach (March 16, 2023). "Gov. Hochul demands accused sex abuser Juan Ardila resign from Assembly". New York Post. Retrieved March 17, 2023.