caption district website state_senate party nationality preceded term_start residence article_title name occupation alma_mater
stewart-cousins in 2013 35th -lsb- http://www.nysenate.gov/senator/andrea-stewart-cousins www.nysenate.gov/senator/andrea-stewart-cousins] new york democratic american nicholas spano 2007 yonkers , new york andrea stewart-cousins
 andrea stewart-cousins public official pace university lehman college pace university
andrea stewart-cousins

andrea stewart-cousins -lrb- democrat , indendence and working families -rrb- is a new york state senator and the first woman in new york state history to lead a conference in albany .
the yonkers resident represents the 35th state senate district in new york which in its present configuration includes ardsley , dobbs ferry , elmsford , greenburgh , hastings-on-hudson , irvington , tarrytown , scarsdale and parts of yonkers , white plains , and new rochelle .
prior to being elected to the new york state senate , she was a westchester county legislator .
she was the first african-american woman elected as a county legislator , and the first african-american woman to preside over the new york state senate in 2009 .
in 2012 , her colleagues chose her to be the first female legislative leader ; she currently serves as democratic conference leader .
