1945 New York City mayoral election

1945 New York City mayoral election

←  1941 November 6, 1945 1949  →

Candidate William O'Dwyer Jonah J. Goldstein Newbold Morris Party Democratic Republican No Deal Alliance American Labor Liberal City Fusion Popular vote 1,125,355 431,601 408,408 Percentage 56.8% 21.8% 20.6%

Borough results O'Dwyer:     50–60%     60–70%

Mayor before election Fiorello H. La Guardia Republican Elected mayor William O'Dwyer Democratic

The 1945 New York City mayoral election took place on November 6, 1945, in New York City. The candidates were King County District Attorney William O'Dwyer, a Democrat, and Jonah J. Goldstein, a Republican judge, as well as other, third-party candidates.

O'Dwyer won the contest with 56.77% of the vote. ^[1]

Democratic nomination

William O'Dwyer, who had built his reputation as Brooklyn's top prosecutor on his case against Murder, Inc., ran for mayor once again. ^[2] In 1941, William O'Dwyer lost to incumbent Fiorello LaGuardia by over 100,000 votes. In the following years, however, he enhanced his political image by enlisting in World War II. Behind the scenes, he also cultivated ties to powerful members of Tammany Hall, which had reluctantly backed his 1941 campaign, and allegedly sought common cause with organized crime figures such as Frank Costello. ^[3]

With both popular and party support, O'Dwyer had no trouble gaining the Democratic nomination for a second consecutive campaign, though he bowed to pressure from U.S. Representative Vito Marcantonio and gangster Thomas Luchese to nominate Vincent Impellitteri for president of the City Council. ^[3]

The American Labor Party, led by Marcantonio, also nominated O'Dwyer. ^[4]

Republican nomination

Candidates

• Jonah J. Goldstein, judge of the Court of General Sessions

Declined

• Newbold Morris, president of the New York City Council (ran as No Deal candidate)

Morris was meant to be on the Republican slate, but he refused the nomination and attacked Goldstein as a "discarded Tammany candidate for mayor". La Guardia asked Morris to run and he announced his candidacy as the nominee of the No Deal Party on August 5. ^[5]

Liberal nomination

Candidates

• Jonah J. Goldstein, judge of the Court of General Sessions
• Newbold Morris, president of the New York City Council

Withdrew

• Joseph McGoldrick, New York City Comptroller (endorsed Goldstein)

Declined

• Wendell Willkie, Republican nominee for President of the United States in 1940

Campaign

The Liberal Party of New York wanted Wendell Willkie to run for mayor and met with him in May 1944. He was interested in the idea, but died in October. The Liberals attempted to negotiate with the Democrats, but O'Dwyer had ties to the ALP. Morris, while running as a Republican, sought the party's support and the Liberals were favorable to Joseph McGoldrick. McGoldrick withdrew from the race and suggested Goldstein, who was approved. ^[6]

General election

Candidates

• Farrell Dobbs, organizer of International Brotherhood of Teamsters and mentor to Jimmy Hoffa (Trotskyist Anti-War)
• Joseph G. Glass (Socialist)
• Jonah J. Goldstein, judge of the Court of General Sessions (Republican, Liberal, and City Fusion)
• Eric Hass, author and perennial candidate (Socialist Labor)
• Newbold Morris, president of the New York City Council (No Deal)
• William O'Dwyer, Kings County District Attorney (Democratic and American Labor)
• Max Shachtman, journalist and activist (Workers)

Endorsements

Jonah J. Goldstein

Newspapers

• New York World-Telegram ^[4]

Organizations

• Citizens Union, president of the New York City Bar Association ^[4]

Newbold Morris

Newspapers

• New York Post ^[4]
• The New York Times ^[4]

William O'Dwyer

Federal officials

• Robert F. Wagner, member of the U.S. Senate (1927–1949)
• Henry A. Wallace, 10th United States Secretary of Commerce (1945–1946) ^[4]

Organizations

• American Federation of Labor ^[4]
• Congress of Industrial Organizations ^[4]

Notable individuals

• Sidney Hillman, labor leader ^[4]

Declined to endorse

Notable individuals

• Charles Culp Burlingham, president of the New York City Bar Association ^[4]
• Samuel Seabury, lawyer ^[4]

Results

1945 New York City mayoral election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	William O'Dwyer	867,426	43.76%	2.75
	American Labor	William O'Dwyer	257,929	13.01%	5.82
	Total	William O'Dwyer	1,125,357	56.77%	10.26
	Republican	Jonah J. Goldstein	301,144	15.19%	14.45
	Liberal	Jonah J. Goldstein	122,316	6.17%	N/A
	City Fusion	Jonah J. Goldstein	8,141	0.41%	2.38
	Total	Jonah J. Goldstein	431,601	21.77%	N/A
	No Deal	Newbold Morris	408,348	20.60%	N/A
	Socialist	Joseph G. Glass	9,304	0.47%	0.60
	Trotskyist Anti-War	Farrell Dobbs	3,656	0.18%	N/A
	Socialist Labor	Eric Hass	3,465	0.17%	N/A
	Workers	Max Schachtman	585	0.03%	N/A
	Write-in		45	0.00%
Total votes			1,982,361	100.00%

References

1. "Our Campaigns – New York City Mayor Race – Nov 06, 1945". OurCampaigns.org. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
2. Allen 1993, p. 263.
3. Allen 1993, p. 264.
4. Soyer 2021, p. 48.
5. Soyer 2021, p. 47.
6. Soyer 2021, p. 46.

Works cited

• Allen, Oliver E. (1993). The Tiger: The Rise and Fall of Tammany Hall. Addison-Wesley. ISBN   9780201624632.
• Soyer, Daniel (2021). Left in the Center: The Liberal Party of New York and the Rise and Fall of American Social Democracy. Cornell University Press. ISBN   9781501759888. JSTOR   10.7591/j.ctv1hw3x50.2.