Gina Arena
Gina Arena (Republican Party, Conservative Party) ran for election to the New York State Senate to represent District 40. She lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Arena completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Gina Arena was born in Mount Kisco, New York. She earned a high school diploma from John Jay High School. Her career experience includes working as an administrative assistant and advocate.[1][2]
Elections
2024
See also: New York State Senate elections, 2024
General election
General election for New York State Senate District 40
Incumbent Peter Harckham defeated Gina Arena in the general election for New York State Senate District 40 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Peter Harckham (D / Working Families Party) | 53.6 | 88,582 |
 | Gina Arena (R / Conservative Party)  | 46.4 | 76,660 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.0 | 59 | ||
| Total votes: 165,301 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Peter Harckham advanced from the Democratic primary for New York State Senate District 40.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Gina Arena advanced from the Republican primary for New York State Senate District 40.
Conservative Party primary election
The Conservative Party primary election was canceled. Gina Arena advanced from the Conservative Party primary for New York State Senate District 40.
Working Families Party primary election
The Working Families Party primary election was canceled. Incumbent Peter Harckham advanced from the Working Families Party primary for New York State Senate District 40.
Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Arena in this election.
2022
See also: New York State Senate elections, 2022
General election
General election for New York State Senate District 40
Incumbent Peter Harckham defeated Gina Arena in the general election for New York State Senate District 40 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Peter Harckham (D / Working Families Party) | 53.4 | 66,419 |
| Gina Arena (R) | 46.6 | 57,925 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.0 | 20 | ||
| Total votes: 124,364 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Peter Harckham advanced from the Democratic primary for New York State Senate District 40.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Gina Arena advanced from the Republican primary for New York State Senate District 40.
Working Families Party primary election
The Working Families Party primary election was canceled. Incumbent Peter Harckham advanced from the Working Families Party primary for New York State Senate District 40.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Gina Arena completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Arena's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I am a life-long Westchester resident, a pro-choice mother of eight, and a longtime advocate for disabled children and families. My husband and I tragically lost our son, Jimmy, to brain cancer at age six, and we have a daughter with severe Autism. Advocating for her and for children going through what Jimmy and our family did, has become a major part of my life.
At the same time, I’ve watched neighbor after neighbor pack up and move out of state, not because they don’t love New York, but because they simply can’t afford to stay here. Those who can remain have to watch as their children and grandchildren move away to states with more reasonable tax rates. It’s demoralizing.
What I will bring to a highly ideological State Senate is common sense. There’s little of it in Albany today. Our one-party state government spends too much, taxes too much, and squanders billions of hard-earned tax dollars on experimental projects that fail. This year alone, Albany wasted more than a half-billion tax dollars on the disastrous Congestion Pricing Tax, and they’ve spent more than $2 billion on services for the more than 200,000 migrants who have poured into our “Sanctuary State” this year. We simply can’t afford that.- New York is too expensive. Under one-party progressive rule, it taxes too much, spends too much, and squanders billions on projects like the failed congestion pricing tax that no one asked for or wanted. We need to restore balance and common sense in a state legislature clearly failing us. About two million New Yorkers fled this state in the past 20 years because of its high costs and excessive job-killing regulations. That has to stop. If we want to change Albany, we need to change who we send there.
- Illegal migration is eating up billions of tax dollars that are desperately needed to address real challenges being faced by New Yorkers. Long-term housing is desperately needed for New Yorkers with severe disabilities, our infrastructure is a mess, and our seniors are struggling with some of the highest property taxes in the nation. New York has forgotten its priorities, and we can't afford that. We need to get back to basics.
- The New York Board of Regents and strident progressive ideologues in Albany want to merge girls and boys sports in New York. That's an affront to 50 years of female progress in this country. Girls work hard to make sports teams, and many are seeking athletic scholarships to colleges. Adding boys and biological males to girls teams is unfair and unsafe. Males are naturally bigger and stronger than girls, on average, and, if the hard-left progressives get their way, they will win the playing slots and scholarships these girls deserve. Avoidable injuries will occur as well. As State Senator, I will do everything in my power to stop this madness. Girls aren't second-class citizens. They deserve their own sports teams.
The obvious solution to New York’s migrant crisis is ending the Sanctuary State policies that are attracting migrants here — approximately 200,000 in the past year. Handing out $4,000 in cash to migrants and saying “Good luck to you” isn’t a sustainable plan. It’s just another band aid solution to a problem New York brought upon itself. A band aid taxpayers can’t afford. What ever happened to common sense?
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2022
Gina Arena completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Arena's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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- Inflation combined with New York State's Pre-Existing Affordability Crisis is forcing many New Yorkers to leave the state. I want my kids and the many young families of our community to have the same opportunities I had growing up. We must make New York more affordable. As State Senator, I plan on curbing reckless state spending, cutting taxes, fully suspending the state gas tax, and rejecting the MTA Congestion Pricing Commuter Tax.
- Crime is out of control in New York. And this is clearly a direct result of the pro-criminal agenda in Albany. Criminals commit violent crimes and then are released right back out on the streets because of Bail Reform. I am running for State Senate to restore public safety: I will fight to repeal bail reform, back our law enforcement, put victims over criminals, supporting removing soft-on-crime DAs who refuse to enforce the law, and invest in crtical mental health services for those in need.
- There is a drug addiction and mental health crisis in our backyard. We need serious state investment in order to combat this crisis. Personal experience with this serious issue drives my passion to ensure there is no more suffering to addiction and mental health issues in Westchester, Putnam, and Rockland Counties. I will be an advocate in Albany for those in need
Public Safety Complex and Criminal Justice System.
Education.
Mental Healthcare and Drug Addiction Services.
Veterans Services.
Senior Services.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
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Candidate New York State Senate District 40 |
Personal |
Footnotes
