In his first bid for the Legislature, Paolella and Republican running mate Louis F. Kosco defeated incumbent Democratic Assemblymen Robert Burns and Paul Contillo.[2] After serving one term there, Paolella ran for the Senate in 1981 and defeated incumbent John Skevin.[3] Paolella served a two-year term in the Senate before being defeated for reelection in 1983 by Contillo[4] who went on to serve for eight more years in the Senate and a second brief stint in the Assembly in 2013.
Paolella later moved to Bay Head and got involved in local politics there. In 2014, running on a Republican ticket with fellow Bergen County transplant Steve Lonegan, he ran for a seat on the Ocean CountyBoard of Chosen Freeholders seeking to defeat long-time incumbent Freeholder Joseph H. Vicari.[5] Vicari ultimately defeated Paolella nearly 76%–24%.[6]