Passion for politics passed down to Danny Fitzpatrick, candidate for NY Assembly GOP nod – Auburn Citizen

But the political route wasn’t his “plan A.” As a student at Syracuse University, he joined the Army ROTC program and eyed a military career after graduation. In 2009, he was named cadet of the year. 

However, his military aspirations came to a halt. He was transferring paperwork when he had an epileptic seizure or a severe migraine with aura. After a visit to a neurologist, he received a medical discharge after nearly three years in the ROTC program. 

“That kind of left me in a tough situation where I had no backup plan,” Fitzpatrick said in an interview. “There was no ‘plan B.’ I try to make that one of my mottos in life. I don’t have plan B so there’s no focus on what happens when I fail. It’s correct course for a new plan A.” 

It wasn’t long, though, before he embraced the idea of a career in politics. 

He was chair of the College Republicans at Syracuse University, where he earned bachelor’s degrees in history and political science. To get a better sense of whether politics was the right path, he contacted then-U.S. Rep. Michael Arcuri, a former Oneida County district attorney and family friend. Fitzpatrick went to Washington, D.C., for a summer and worked for Arcuri. 

“It got me kickstarted that maybe there’s something to this political thing,” Fitzpatrick said. 

His interest in politics was ingrained at a young age. He was born and raised in LaFayette. His mother, Diane, is a state Court of Claims judge. His father, William, is the longtime Onondaga County district attorney. 

“I remember distinctly my father being called away for all sorts of murder scenes and crimes as a kid,” Danny Fitzpatrick said. “We had to have mugshots taped to the front door because people had threatened to murder my family over the course of the years. You get used to seeing which mugshots were up to be aware of that person. If that person is at the door, they’re here to kill you. That was definitely a different aspect of growing up the son of a DA and a local politician-turned-judge.”

Fitzpatrick recalls his mother campaigning for LaFayette Town Board while she was pregnant with his brother, Sean. In 1996, Diane Fitzpatrick was a delegate for Bob Dole at the Republican National Convention in San Diego. 

“That really got me engaged because 7-year-old Danny was so positive Bob Dole was going to be president of the United States,” he said. “Obviously, that did not happen.” 

When U.S. Sen. Alfonse D’Amato ran for reelection in 1998, Fitzpatrick conducted his first poll. He surveyed his classmates to learn whether their parents supported D’Amato or the Democratic challenger, Chuck Schumer. 

He considers the 9/11 attacks a pivotal moment in his development. He was a seventh-grader at the time and remembers that his first concern was for his mother, who had an office in the World Trade Center. (His mother was home in central New York at the time.) 

Fitzpatrick had a cousin who was a New York City firefighter. Jeff Olsen, was in one of the towers when it collapsed. 

“That really ingrained the desire to do something for my country,” Fitzpatrick said. “My intention was always military. It was never politics. But when the military thing didn’t pan out the way I anticipated, the shift to politics made a lot of sense.” 

After graduating from Syracuse University, he began working on local campaigns. He left central New York to work for Thom Tillis’ Senate campaign in North Carolina and at a political action committee for the National Rifle Association. 

In 2015, he moved back to LaFayette and worked for Ryan McMahon, who was then the chairman of the Onondaga County Legislature and is now in his first term as county executive. He’s been a consultant for other campaigns and managed his father’s reelection bid in 2019. 

While he is a Republican, he said he’s developed great relationships with Democrats over the years. Former Syracuse Mayor Tom Young, a Democrat, is a family friend. Fitzpatrick said Young recently sent him a note and a donation to his Assembly campaign. 

Outside of politics, he enjoys golf and traveling. His family took vacations to different parts of the world, including Ireland and Saudi Arabia. After he got married in 2017, he and his wife, Trish, went to Malta on their honeymoon. 

Fitzpatrick is an animal lover, too. He and Trish have five rescue dogs. He’s had several encounters with animals while campaigning for state Assembly. He found a stray dog, cat, snapping turtle and a deer that was later found to be dehydrated. 

Trish, an Otisco native, runs a company in Columbia, South Carolina. Fitzpatrick noted that there’s an attraction to settling in South Carolina, but they wanted to stay at home. 

“There’s always something lurking behind me. Here’s an opportunity elsewhere,” he said. “It’s really been about planting my roots permanently here in central New York.” 

The primary election is Tuesday. Fitzpatrick and John Lemondes are the candidates for the Republican nomination in the 126th Assembly District. The district includes parts of Cayuga, Chenango, Cortland and Onondaga counties.