Jose Rivera is a member of the New York State Assembly, representing the Fordham-Bedford, Kingsbridge Heights, Bedford Park, and Belmont sections of the Bronx. A prominent New York Democrat, Mr. Rivera was elected to the Assembly in 2000, and was the head of the Democratic Party in the Bronx until he was ousted in 2008 by the so-called Rainbow Rebels. This is Mr. Rivera's second stint in the State Assembly; having previously served in the State Assembly from 1983 to 1987 until becoming a member of the New York City Council where he served from 1987 to 2000. Prior to his election to the Assembly in 1982, Mr. Rivera gained prominence as a labor advocate and organizer of construction workers and "gypsy" taxicab drivers.
Mr. Rivera was a vocal advocate for the withdrawal of the U.S. Navy from its bombing range on the island of Vieques, Puerto Rico, and was arrested in 2001, together with Al Sharpton and other political figures, for trespassing onto the Navy's Vieques facility. The Navy subsequently agreed to withdraw from the Vieques facility.
Mr. Rivera was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 1936. Two of his children, Joel Rivera and Naomi Rivera, are also elected officials in the Bronx, members of the New York City Council and New York State Assembly, respectively.