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Political Parties in New York City
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 September 2013
Extract
Though declining to run for a fourth term in 1945, Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia boasted: “Listen, I could run on a laundry ticket and be elected!” At one time or another during his political career, the Mayor had run under nine different party labels—under as many as four in a single election. To the outsider and the New Yorker alike, this multiplicity of candidacies and parties in New York City is highly confusing. The multi-party system is due to many factors, especially the election laws, the size and complexion of the population, the existence of an active independent movement, and the recent political activity of and schisms within organized labor.
- Type
- American Government and Politics
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- Copyright
- Copyright © American Political Science Association 1946
References
1 McKinney's Consolidated Laws of New York, Election Law, Art. 2, sec. 12.
2 The population of these boroughs in 1940 was: Bronx, 1,394,711; Brooklyn (Kings County), 2,698,285; Manhattan (New York County), 1,889,924; Queens, 1,297,634; and Richmond, 174,441.
3 Brooklyn, Bronx, and Queens leaders are jealous of interference by Tammany Hall (the New York County Democratic organization), following an old cry: “The Tiger must not cross the bridge.” However, there are frequent attempts, both ways, to “cross the bridge.”
4 The New York County Democratic Committee rules permit additional members over and above this minimum, so that there are many more than two thousand members on the committee. The rule provides that each election district shall be entitled to an additional member for every 20 votes cast in the district for the Democratic candidate for governor at the last general election; while the Republican rules allow one additional member for each 50 party votes in excess of 100. In Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens, the statutory minimum on the county committees is, respectively, 2,592, 1,700, and 1,602.
5 New York Times, Aug. 9, 1945.
6 The vote may be challenged by one-fifth of all the members of the assembly district delegation; and thereupon the secretary calls for the vote of each committee-man. Thomas J. Curran's leadership has gone unchallenged for a number of years in New York county. The other Republican leaders are: John R. Crews, Brooklyn; Warren B. Ashmead, Queens; John J. Knewitz, Bronx; and Edward Ruppell, Richmond.
7 The insurgents in the 1945 primary contest had the “across the river” indirect support of Edward J. Flynn, Bronx leader, but were badly defeated. As a result, Tammany is now under the complete control of Leader Loughlin, Secretary Bert Stand, and the chairman of the Elections Committee, Clarence H. Neal, Jr. Frank V. Kelly and Jeremiah Sullivan are the Brooklyn and Richmond leaders, respectively. The landslide victory of Mayor William O'Dwyer in 1945 strengthened the position of the Queens Democratic leader, Congressman James A. Roe. See Long Island Star-Journal, Nov. 7, 1945. On Tammany Hall bosses and machines, see Werner, M. R., Tammany Hall (Garden City, New York, 1928)Google Scholar; Northrup, W. B. and Northrup, J. B., The Insolence of Office (New York, 1932)Google Scholar; and Dewey, John, New York and the Seabury Investigation (New York, 1933).Google Scholar
8 Peel, Roy V., The Political Clubs of New York City (New York, 1935).Google Scholar An intimate glimpse of the social and political aspects of these clubs is also to be obtained from Smith, Alfred E., Up To Now; An Autobiography (New York, 1929).Google Scholar
9 Besides New York, only California, Maine, and Vermont permit unqualified “double filing.” Maryland and Massachusetts permit double filing for some offices. In the former state, candidates may seek several nominations, but are prohibited from running in the general election on more than one ticket. On the subject, see Binkley, Robert W. Jr., Double Filing in Primary Elections (Bureau of Public Administration, Univ. of Calif., Berkeley, 1945).Google Scholar
10 In 1942, there were 43 congressional districts, with two representatives elected at large. In 1944, the state was reapportioned into 45 districts.
11 Representative Adam C. Powell, of Harlem, duplicated this feat in his district in 1944.
12 “One of Neal's protegés, James Pemberton, a young Negro, has become the major-domo of Marcantonio's machine. Pemberton, a Tammany district leader, is personally devoted to Marcantonio, and, since his clubhouse chores are few these days, he spends nearly all of his time working for the Congressman…. Through Pemberton, Marcantonio can always get his point of view across in Tammany executive meetings. Rovere, Richard H., “Vito Marcantonio: Machine Politician, New Style,” Harper's Mag., Vol. 188, p. 397 (Apr., 1944).Google Scholar This article gives a very useful insight into practical politics in New York City.
13 Rovere, p. 394.
14 On Mayor La Guardia and New York City politics, see Limpus, L. and Leyson, B., This Man La Guardia (New York, 1938)Google Scholar; Rogers, John, “The Terrific Mr. La Guardia,” American Mercury, Vol. 58, pp. 149–156 (Feb., 1944)Google Scholar; Salter, J. T. (ed.), The American Politician (Chapel Hill, 1938), Chap. 1.Google Scholar
15 A decade ago the City Fusion party was able to poll several hundred thousand votes.
16 To become a recognized political party in New York State, a group must poll 50,000 votes for its candidate for governor. Only the Republican, Democratic, and American Labor parties are now qualified. Minor and municipal parties in New York City get on the ballot by means of nominating petitions; 7,500 signatures are required.
17 The Board of Elections voided the nominating petition of the American Veterans party on the conceded fact that the election district addresses given for signers were wrong, being based upon the district numbers in force in 1944 instead of the 1945 numbers. New York Times, Aug. 29, 1945.
18 New York Times, Aug. 8, 1945. For details on the charge that Goldstein's nomination was the result of a “deal,” see text by Morris, Newbold, New York Times, Oct. 13, 1945.Google Scholar
19 Mr. Morris polled over 400,000 votes, the second largest vote on any party line. This is illustrative of the independent voter strength and of a “personal” party. (See Table I.)
20 For interesting details on the origin of the ALP, see Waldman, Louis, Labor Lawyer (New York, 1944)Google Scholar, and a pamphlet by Oneal, James, The American Labor Party; An Interpretation (New York, 1937).Google Scholar
21 These were: chairman, Luigi Antonini, vice-president of the I.L.G.W.U.; secretary, Alex Rose, vice-president of the United Hatters, Cap, and Millinery Workers; treasurer, Andrew Armstrong, vice-president of the Printing Pressmen's Union of the A. F. of L.
22 See New York Herald-Tribune, Jan. 10, 1944, and New York Times, Apr. 21, 1944. For an account of the switch in tactics and the Communist effort to permeate trade unions and the PAC, see Moore, Barrington Jr., “The Communist Party of the U. S. A.; An Analysis of a Social Movement,” in this Review, Vol. 39, pp. 31–41 (Feb., 1945).Google Scholar
23 At this time, Professor George Counts was state chairman and Alex Rose, secretary.
24 New York Times, Mar. 2, 1944.
25 Six hundred and twenty-five out of 750 seats in the state convention were won by the left-wing. Even before the 1944 primary, the party committees in four out of five counties in New York City were under left-wing control.
26 New York Times, May 20 and 21, 1945. See also Platform and Declaration of the Liberal Party.
27 Hillman is state chairman of the ALP and Dubinsky is first vice-chairman of the Executive Committee of the Liberal party, and both are heads of rival unions affiliated with the CIO and A. F. of L., respectively. Their relationship to the labor movement is useful in understanding the Labor-Liberal party cleavages. On this, see Waldman, Labor Lawyer, and Stolberg, , Tailor's Progress and The Story of the CIO (New York, 1838).Google Scholar
28 Many prominent anti-Dewey Republican liberals and business men welcomed the opportunity in 1944 to vote for Roosevelt under the Liberal party label.
29 The Liberal party published a remarkable 69-page municipal program for New York City in 1945 entitled For Our City. (Obtainable from the party's state headquarters, 160 W. 44th Street, New York City.)
30 In spite of a stand taken by Republican county leaders against the practice, the Republican candidate for borough president of Richmond, Cornelius P. Hall, accepted the endorsement of the ALP. New York Times, July 4, 1945.
31 On the hostility of the ALP to Mr. Dewey, see New York Times, Sept. 4, 1945.
32 Liberal Party News, Oct. 15, 1945. Leaders in the Liberal party also have not shared the intense dislike for Governor Dewey. Mr. Dubinsky has been grateful to the Governor because the latter has not restored home work, which at one time had been most troublesome to the I.L.G.W.U.
33 New York Times, May 11, 1945. For a useful statement on the position of the American Federation of Labor on this problem, see Green, William, “The AFL and World Labor Unity,” International Postwar Problems, II, 285–292 (July, 1945).Google Scholar The IFTU was dissolved on December 15, 1945.
34 This new line was inspired in large part by the suggestions of the French Communist leader, Jacques Duelos. On the changes in Communist tactics, see New York Times, June 5, July 26, 27, 28, and 29, 1945, and PM, July 23, 1945.