New York state election, 1934

The 1934 New York state election was held on November 6, 1934, to elect the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, the State Comptroller, the Attorney General, a U.S. Senator, two U.S. Representatives-at-large, the Chief Judge^[1] and two associate judges^[2] of the New York Court of Appeals, as well as all members of the New York State Assembly and the New York State Senate.

History

The Communist State Committee met on August 28, and nominated Israel Amter for Governor.^[3]

The Socialist state convention met on July 1 at New York City, and nominated Charles Solomon for Governor; and Norman Thomas for the U.S. Senate.^[4]

The Democratic state convention met on September 27 at Buffalo, New York, and re-nominated the incumbents Lehman, Bray, Tremaine, Bennett, Loughran and Copeland; and completed the ticket endorsing two Republicans: Associate Judge Frederick E. Crane for Chief Judge and Supreme Court Justice Edward R. Finch for the Court of Appeals.^[5]

The Republican state convention met on September 28 at Rochester, New York, and nominated New York City Park Commissioner Robert Moses for Governor on the third ballot after a struggle with the Macy faction. Also nominated were Fred J. Douglas for Lieutenant Governor; Wilson R. Campbell, of Steuben County, for Comptroller; William T. Powers, of Brooklyn, for Attorney General; E. Harold Cluett for the U.S. Senate; Frederick E. Crane for Chief Judge; the incumbent^[6] Democrat John T. Loughran to succeed himself; and Charles B. Sears for the Court of Appeals, thus dropping fellow Republican Edward R. Finch who had been nominated by the Democrats in a common cross-endorsement deal for judicial officers.^[7]

The "Recovery Party" filed a petition to nominate state officers on October 9, 1934. The ticket was headed by Ex-Mayor of New York John F. Hylan for Governor.^[8] The ticket was not allowed on the ballot because of numerous forged signatures and thus not meeting the legal requirements.^[9]

The "Constitutional Party" nominated Colonel Henry Breckinridge, a Democrat who opposed President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal policy, for the U.S. Senate, and used the "Pine Tree of Liberty" as its emblem on the ballot.

Result

The whole Democratic ticket was elected in the third landslide in a row.

The incumbents Lehman, Bray, Tremaine, Bennett, Loughran and Copeland were re-elected.

The Law Preservation Party lost its automatic ballot access and disappeared.

1934 state election results

Office	Democratic ticket		Republican ticket		Socialist ticket		Communist ticket		Constitutional ticket		Law Preservation ticket		Socialist Labor ticket
Governor	Herbert H. Lehman	2,201,729	Robert Moses	1,393,638	Charles Solomon	126,580	Israel Amter	45,878	(none)		William F. Varney	20,449	Aaron M. Orange[10]	7,225
Lieutenant Governor	M. William Bray		Fred J. Douglas		Herman Kobbe		William J. Burroughs		(none)		James F. Luckey	17,393	Emil F. Teichert[11]
Comptroller	Morris S. Tremaine		Wilson R. Campbell		Fred Sander		Rose Wortis		(none)		Fred C. Foster	17,133	O. Martin Olson
Attorney General	John J. Bennett, Jr.		William T. Powers		William Karlin[12]		Fred Briehl		(none)		Joseph S. Robinson	17,872	Simeon Bickwheat[13]
Chief Judge	Frederick E. Crane		Frederick E. Crane		Jacob Hillquit		Richard B. Moore		(none)		Frederick E. Crane
Judge of the Court of Appeals	John T. Loughran		John T. Loughran		Darwin J. Meserole[14]		Gertrude Welsh		(none)		John T. Loughran
Judge of the Court of Appeals	Edward R. Finch		Charles B. Sears		Julian H. Weiss				(none)		David E. Hartshorn	19,922
U.S. Senator	Royal S. Copeland	2,046,377	E. Harold Cluett	1,363,440	Norman Thomas	194,952	Max Bedacht	45,396	Henry Breckinridge	24,241	William Sheafe Chase	16,769	Olive M. Johnson	6,622
U.S. Representative-at-large	Matthew J. Merritt		William B. Groat, Jr.[15]		Charles W. Noonan[16]		Henry Shepard[17]		(none)		William E. Barron	16,770	Jeremiah D. Crowley[18]
U.S. Representative-at-large	Caroline O'Day		Natalie F. Couch[19]		August Claessens		Emanuel Levin		(none)		Dorothy Frooks	19,853	Jacob Berlin[20]

Notes

1. ^ to succeed Cuthbert W. Pound who would reach the constitutional age limit at the end of the year
2. ^ one to succeed Frederick E. Crane whose term would expire at the end of the year, the other to succeed Henry T. Kellogg who had resigned
3. ^ COMMUNISTS PICK TICKET in NYT on August 29, 1934 (subscription required)
4. ^ THOMAS NOMINATED IN HARMONY MOVE in NYT on July 2, 1934 (subscription required)
5. ^ LEHMAN, COPELAND ARE RENOMINATED IN DRIVING SESSION in NYT on September 28, 1934 (subscription required)
6. ^ Loughran had been appointed by Governor Herbert H. Lehman to fill the vacancy temporarily
7. ^ REPUBLICANS NAME MOSES FOR GOVERNOR ON 3D BALLOT in NYT on September 29, 1934 (subscription required)
8. ^ PETITION FOR HYLAN IS FILED AT ALBANY in NYT on October 10, 1934 (subscription required)
9. ^ ALBANY COURT BARS HYLAN STATE TICKET AS NOT NOMINATED in NYT on October 26, 1934 (subscription required)
10. ^ Aaron M. Orange, of The Bronx, public school teacher, ran also For Governor in 1932, and for U.S. Vice President in 1940
11. ^ Emil F. Teichert, of Manhattan, "unemployed railroad worker," ran also in 1932
12. ^ William Karlin, ran also in 1928, 1930 and 1932
13. ^ Simeon Bickwheat, ran also for State Engineer in 1922 and 1924; and for Attorney General in 1928
14. ^ Darwin J. Meserole, ran also for Attorney General in 1920; for Chief Judge in 1926; and for associate judge of the Court of Appeals in 1930 and 1933
15. ^ William Budge Groat (1900-1986), of Queens, Assistant New York State Attorney General in charge of the "Food Inquiry" in 1930, later New York Supreme Court justice, William B. Groat, 86, Ex-Queens State Judge Obit in NYT on April 10, 1986 (subscription required)
16. ^ Charles W. Noonan, of Schenectady, Alderman from Schenectady's 7th Ward, ran also for Comptroller in 1914, 1916 and 1926; for Treasurer in 1918; for Secretary of State in 1920; and for Lieutenant Governor in 1932
17. ^ Henry Shepard, of Harlem, ran also for Lieutenant Governor in 1932
18. ^ Jeremiah D. Crowley, of Marcellus, ran also for State Engineer in 1910; for Lieutenant Governor in 1912, 1914 and 1920; for Governor in 1916, 1922, 1926 and 1930; and for the U.S. Senate in 1932
19. ^ Natalie F. (Couch) Williams (1890-1956), of Nyack, lawyer, personal secretary to Supreme Court Justice Arthur S. Tompkins, later Journal Clerk of the New York State Assembly, married 1940 Ex-State Senator Lawrence G. Williams, of Buffalo, MRS. WILLIAMS, 66, LEADER IN G.O.P. Obit in NYT on October 20, 1956 (subscription required)
20. ^ Jacob Berlin (b. 1906 Poland), clerk, ran also for Lieutenant Governor in 1938

Sources

• Result (Law Preservation only): Vote for Prohibition candidates at Prohibitionists.org
• Official Result: DRY PARTY LOSES PLACE ON BALLOT in NYT on December 11, 1934

See also

• New York gubernatorial elections
• New York state elections