 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
New York's 20th congressional district | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Elections in New York State |
|---|
 |
The 1949 New York's 20th congressional district special election was held on May 17, 1949, to elect the United States representative from New York's 20th congressional district. Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. won the election as the nominee of the Liberal and Four Freedoms parties.
Sol Bloom, a member of Tammany Hall, was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1923, and served fourteen terms. [1] He represented New York's 20th congressional district at the time of his death on March 7, 1949. [2] A majority of the district's residents were Jewish and a large amount were Irish. [3] There wer 138,054 registered voters in the district. [4]
Hugo Rogers, the borough president of Manhattan and a leader in Tammany Hall, hoped that Governor Thomas Dewey would not call a special election and would instead leave the seat vacant until the 1950 election. [5] The American Labor Party filed suit 28 days after Bloom's death for Dewey to schedule a special election. [6] On April 7, Dewey called for an election to be held on May 17. [7]
Annette Rubinstein, a member of the Communist Party USA, was nominated by the American Labor Party. [8] She announced her candidacy at a memorial in Madison Square Garden for the fourth anniversary of Franklin D. Roosevelt's death. [9]
The Liberal Party of New York endorsed Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. the same day of his announcement [10] , formally gave him its nomination on April 13, [11] and Roosevelt accepted it on April 19. [12] Marshall Field III, Joseph E. Davies, Henry Morgenthau Jr., Tallulah Bankhead, and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. donated to his campaign. [13]
Roosevelt threatened to run as the nominee of the Four Freedoms Party if he lost the Democratic nomination. [14] 3,000 signatures were required to place him onto the ballot [15] and the Liberal Party claimed that it gathered 11,000-12,000 of the 26,000 signatures to give Roosevelt the Four Freedoms Party ballot line. [16] On May 6, Tammany Hall filed a lawsuit to remove the Four Freedoms Party from the ballot, [17] but withdrew it on May 9. [18]
Roosevelt, at the urging of Alex Rose, [3] [20] announced his campaign on March 15 [21] despite living in Woodbury, which was outside of the district. [22] [23] Charles Horowitz, a former member of Tammany Hall, was Roosevelt's campaign manager. [24] The Republican Party challenged Roosevelt's eligibilty to vote in the special election, although he would still be allowed to run, due to his residency, but the New York Supreme Court ruled in Roosevelt's favor. [25] [26]
Tammany Hall opposed Roosevelt and had Benjamin Shalleck run against him, believing that a Jew would fare better. [27] [28] Shalleck's campaign was managed by Abraham Kaplan. [29] Mayor Erastus Corning 2nd attacked Roosevelt's candidacy as an attempt to start a political dynasty in control of the New York State Democratic Party. [30] Roosevelt claimed that Frank Costello used his influence in Tammany Hall to stop him from receiving the Democratic nomination. [31] Shalleck was given the nomination after a two hour session, far longer than the normal few minutes, on April 11, and district leader Robert B. Blaikie, who opposed him and supported Roosevelt, walked out in protest. [32]
William McIntyre was nominated by the Republicans [33] and Alexander Wolf managed his campaign. [34]
Roosevelt won the election with a majority of the vote. [35] He raised $14,121 and spent $15,512 while Shalleck raised $2,465 and spent $439. [36]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. | ||||
| Four Freedoms | Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. | ||||
| Total | Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. | 40,822 | 50.68% | ||
| Democratic | Benjamin Shalleck | 24,352 | 30.23% | ||
| Republican | William H. McIntyre | 10,026 | 12.45% | ||
| American Labor | Annette Rubinstein | 5,348 | 6.64% | ||
| Total votes | 80,548 | 100.00% | |||
The New Deal coalition was an American political coalition that supported the Democratic Party beginning in 1932. The coalition is named after President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal programs, and the follow-up Democratic presidents. It was composed of voting blocs who supported them. The coalition included labor unions, blue-collar workers, big city machines, racial and religious minorities, white Southerners, and intellectuals. Besides voters the coalition included powerful interest groups: Democratic Party organizations in most states, city machines, labor unions, some third parties, universities, and foundations. It was largely opposed by the Republican Party, the business community, and rich Protestants. In creating his coalition, Roosevelt was at first eager to include liberal Republicans and some radical third parties, even if it meant downplaying the "Democratic" name. By the 1940s, the Republican and third-party allies had mostly been defeated. In 1948, the Democratic Party stood alone and won both the White House and both Congressional houses with a mandate, surviving the splits that created two splinter parties.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Jr. was an American lawyer, politician, and businessman. He served as a United States congressman from New York from 1949 to 1955 and in 1963 was appointed United States Under Secretary of Commerce by President John F. Kennedy. He was appointed as the first chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission from 1965 to 1966 by President Lyndon B. Johnson. Roosevelt also ran for governor of New York twice. He was a son of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, and served as an officer in the United States Navy during World War II.
The Liberal Party of New York is a political party in New York. Its platform supports a standard set of socially liberal policies, including abortion rights, increased spending on education, and universal health care.
James Aloysius Farley was an American politician who simultaneously served as chairman of the New York State Democratic Committee, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and postmaster general under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, whose gubernatorial and presidential campaigns were run by Farley.
James Aloysius O'Gorman was an American attorney, judge, and politician from New York. A Democrat, he is most notable for his service as a United States Senator from March 31, 1911, to March 3, 1917.
Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected and re-elected governor of New York in 1928 and 1930. He served from January 1, 1929, until shortly after his election as President of the United States in 1932. His term as governor provided him with a high-visibility position in which to prove himself as well as provide a major base from which to launch a bid for the presidency.
Michael William Bray was an American lawyer and politician. He was the lieutenant governor of New York from 1933 to 1938.
Michael Kieran Reilly was an Irish American lawyer and Democratic politician from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. He served six full terms and one partial term in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Wisconsin's 6th congressional district from 1913 to 1917, and from December 1930 to January 1939. Earlier in his career, he served as district attorney of Fond du Lac County and city attorney of Fond du Lac.
The 1918 New York gubernatorial election took place on November 5, 1918, to elect the Governor and Lieutenant Governor of New York, concurrently with elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
The 1970 United States Senate election in New York was held on November 3, 1970, to elect New York's Class I Senator in its delegation. Representative Charles Goodell had been appointed by Governor Nelson Rockefeller to serve the remainder of Robert F. Kennedy's senatorial term, following Kennedy's assassination.
The 1940 United States presidential election in New York took place on November 5, 1940. All contemporary 48 states were part of the 1940 United States presidential election. Voters had chosen 47 electors to the Electoral College, which selected the president and vice president.
The New York City mayoral election of 1961 occurred on Tuesday, November 7, 1961. Incumbent Democratic Mayor Robert F. Wagner, Jr. won a decisive re-election victory for a third term in office. Wagner defeated the Republican nominee, state Attorney General Louis J. Lefkowitz, and the Citizens Party nominee, New York City Comptroller Lawrence E. Gerosa. Wagner received 51.03% of the vote to Lefkowitz's 34.46%, a Democratic victory margin of 16.57%.
The New York City mayoral election of 1953 occurred on Tuesday, November 3, 1953, with the Democratic candidate, Manhattan Borough President Robert F. Wagner, Jr. winning a decisive plurality in a three-way race.
The 1914 United States Senate election in New York was held on November 3. Incumbent Republican Senator Elihu Root chose not to seek re-election. James Wolcott Wadsworth Jr. was elected to a succeed Root, defeating Democrat James Watson Gerard.
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.
From March 8 to May 20, 1932, voters and members of the Democratic Party elected delegates to the 1932 Democratic National Convention for the purpose of nominating a candidate for president in the 1932 United States presidential election. New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt was selected as the nominee through a series of primary elections and caucuses culminating in the 1932 Democratic National Convention held from June 27 to July 2, 1932, in Chicago, Illinois.
William Barnes Jr. was an American journalist and politician. The longtime owner and publisher of the Albany Evening Journal, Barnes was most notable as a major behind the scenes player in state and U.S. politics as a leader of New York's Republican Party.
The William Barnes vs. Theodore Roosevelt libel trial was a 1915 case between former president Theodore Roosevelt and New York State Republican Party Chairman William Barnes Jr. Barnes sued Roosevelt for libel following accusations of corruption made by Roosevelt against Barnes. The trial became a high-profile news event, and was reported about in newspapers across the country. It ended with Roosevelt's acquittal and played a prominent part in ending Barnes' career as a Republican political leader.
The New York City mayoral election of 1949 took place on November 8, 1949, in New York City. The candidates were incumbent Mayor William O'Dwyer, a Democrat, and former City Council President and 1945 mayoral candidate Newbold Morris, a Republican, as well as other, third-party candidates. Morris was also the nominee of the Liberal Party, and additionally ran on the City Fusion ballot line.
The New York City mayoral election of 1933 took place on November 7, 1933, in New York City. Incumbent Democratic Mayor John P. O'Brien, who was elected in a special election after the resignation of Mayor Jimmy Walker, faced Republican Congressman and 1929 mayoral candidate Fiorello La Guardia, and former acting mayor and President of the New York City Board of Aldermen Joseph V. McKee, who became acting mayor after Walker's resignation until the special election, and ran on the Recovery Party line.
