Bernardi served as Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development at HUD; he was appointed as acting HUD Secretary on April 19, 2008, after the resignation of Alphonso Jackson. He served until administration nominee Steve Preston was confirmed on June 4.[2][3][4]
In 1993, Bernardi was elected as the 51st Mayor of the City of Syracuse, New York, where he served from 1994 to 2001.[1] Bernardi had previously served as the Syracuse City Auditor for five terms.[5] He is a graduate of Syracuse University.[5]