Patty Ritchie's district encompassed portions of the North Country abutting Lake Ontario.
10 Facts About Patty Ritchie
Patty Ritchie graduated from Heuvelton Central High School in 1980.
Patty Ritchie received an associates degree in social work from Mater Dei College of Ogdensburg, New York in 1985.
Patty Ritchie briefly attended SUNY Plattsburgh, then transferred to SUNY Potsdam.
Patty Ritchie was married in 1982 and continued her education part-time while raising her family and working.
Patty Ritchie was then elected as the St Lawrence County Clerk, a position she held from 2000 through 2010.
Patty Ritchie was handily reelected in 2012, defeating a little known county legislator from Oswego County.
Patty Ritchie has run unopposed for reelection three times, in 2014,2016 and 2018.
In 2011, Patty Ritchie was named Chair of the Senate's Agriculture Committee, where she has been recognized as an outstanding champion of the state's 35,000 farm families and sponsored such initiatives as the Young Farmers Grant and loan forgiveness program.
In 2016, Patty Ritchie was named co-chair of the bi-cameral Legislative Commission on Rural Resources, and in 2017, was named Deputy Vice Chair of the important Health Committee, in recognition of her work to improve public health, especially in rural counties, like those she represents.