New York City mayoral elections
The mayor of New York City is elected in early November every four years and takes office at the beginning of the following year.[] The city, which elects the mayor as its chief executive, consists of the five boroughs, which consolidated to form "Greater" New York on January 1, 1898.
The consolidated city's first mayor, Robert A. Van Wyck, was elected with other municipal officers in [|November 1897]. Mayoral elections had previously been held since 1834 by the City of Brooklyn and the smaller, unconsolidated City of New York.
The current mayor is Bill de Blasio. He was elected for a first term in 2013 and for a second term in [|2017].
Overview
Scope of this article
The vast bulk of this page's contents is statistical: the main results, citywide and by borough, of each of the 32 elections to the Mayoralty of the City of New York since Greater New York was consolidated from the five boroughs in 1897-1898.For many years, but not all, there are also results for minor candidates and for the different parties nominating the same major candidate.
There are brief comments about some of the elections, and separate articles have been written for those of 1917, 1977, 1997, [|2001], 2005, and 2009. Different elections are compared in many of the individual notes, in two [|summary tables] and in one [|specialized table].
New York City's Mayoral elections have been marked by an interplay of factors that are magnified by the size of the population. There was a history of a large socialist vote, there is a history of tension between 'regular' and 'reform' politicians, and there has been electoral fusion, a factor not seen in most of the rest of the United States, with a resulting plethora of smaller, yet influential, third parties.
Terms and term limits (since 1834)
Direct elections to the mayoralty of the unconsolidated City of New York began in 1834 for a term of one year, extended to two years after 1849. The [|1897] Charter of the consolidated City stipulated that the mayor was to be elected for a single four-year term. In 1901, the term halved to two years, with no restrictions on reelection. In 1905, the term was extended to four years once again. In [|1993], the voters approved a two-term limit, and reconfirmed this limit when the issue was submitted to referendum in 1996. In 2008, the New York City Council voted to change the two-term limit to three terms. Legal challenges to the Council's action were rejected by Federal courts in January and April, 2009. However, in 2010, yet another referendum, reverting the limit to two terms, passed overwhelmingly.Principal source: The Encyclopedia of New York City, entries for "charter" and "mayoralty".
- See List of mayors of New York City.
- Mayor Strong, elected in 1894, served an extra year because no municipal election was held in 1896, in anticipation of the consolidated City's switch to odd-year elections.
- George B. McClellan Jr. was elected to one two-year term and one four-year term
- David Dinkins was not affected by the term limit enacted in 1993 because he had served only one term by 1993 and failed to win re-election.
- The September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in Manhattan coincided with the primary elections for a successor to Mayor Giuliani, who was completing his second and final term of office. Many were so impressed by both the urgency of the situation and Giuliani's response that they wanted to keep him in office beyond December 31, 2001, either by removing the term limit or by extending his service for a few months. However, neither happened, the primary elections were re-run on September 25, the general election was held as scheduled on November 6, and Michael Bloomberg took office on the regularly appointed date of January 1, 2002.
- On October 2, 2008, Michael Bloomberg announced that he would ask the city council to extend the limit for mayor, council and other officers from two terms to three, and that, should such an extended limit prevail, he himself would seek re-election as mayor. On October 23, the New York City Council voted 29-22 to extend the two-term limit to three terms.
- In November 2010, yet another popular referendum, limiting mayoral terms to two, passed overwhelmingly.
Interrupted terms
† Became acting mayor as the president of the board of aldermen or city council.
=
=
- Mayor Havemeyer was a Democrat who ran as a Republican against the Democratic Tweed Ring in 1872.
- Acting Mayors Coman, Vance and Kline did not seek election as mayor.
- Acting Mayors McKee and Impellitteri were Democrats who lost the Democratic primary to succeed themselves, but still ran in the general election as independents.
- Elected Mayor Oakey Hall won re-election, while Mayor Wickham did not seek it. Mayors Mitchel and O'Brien lost attempts at re-election, while Mayor Impellitteri did not run for a full term in the [|1953] regular general election after losing the Democratic primary.
Summary tables
Principal candidates' city-wide vote since 1897
This chart has several purposes. One is to provide ordinary readers with simple, basic information from a very detailed page. Another is to provide a handy index for those looking for a particular candidate or campaign.A slightly more sophisticated purpose is to sketch out on one screen the flow of votes across parties and candidates, as affected by fusion, splitting, cross-endorsement and the emergence of new movements or personalities.
Votes in thousands for principal candidates only, generally those winning more than 4.0% of the total vote. Total vote includes that for all candidates and parties, major and minor.
Winner in bold-face in a colored box. Sitting mayor at the time of the election in italics.
To determine the meaning of abbreviations, click the link or check the list below this table.
Abbreviations used in this table: Fu. or Fus = Fusion, Ind. = Independent, Ind Fu. = Independent Fusion, Independence or Indep'ce = Independence Party of New York, L or Lib. = Liberal Party of New York, Cons. = Conservative Party of New York, ALP = American Labor Party, Soc. = Socialist Party of America, Jeff'n D = The Democracy of Thomas Jefferson, Civic All'ce = Civic Alliance, Exp = Experience party, Jobs & Educ. = Independent Jobs & Education party
How the boroughs voted
See the table above for more information about the candidates and parties involved. Blue indicates a candidate endorsed by the Democratic Party; pink one endorsed by the Republicans; and buff one endorsed by neither party. In [|1981], Edward Koch ran on the tickets of both the Democrats and the Republicans.Click a year to see the table or tables for that particular election
Although separate boroughs since 1898, the Bronx and Manhattan shared New York County and reported elections together until the separate Bronx County was formed in April 1912 and started her separate existence on January 1, 1914. The borough of Richmond changed its name to Staten Island in 1975, although the co-extensive Richmond County still retains that name.
Although it was not uncommon for a candidate to carry all five boroughs in the same election, variations in voting patterns are noticeable. Since it started reporting separate returns in [|1913], the Bronx has supported only one Republican and Manhattan has opposed only two successful candidates. On the other hand, in the eleven elections since 1965 that were contested between Democratic and Republican candidates, Staten Island has voted for only two Democratic candidates, Abe Beame in [|1973] and Koch in [|1985]. Queens has voted for only three, Abe Beame in 1973, Koch in 1985, and DeBlasio in 2017. The City as a whole elected four of the Democratic candidates in those same eleven elections from 1965 to 2009. The Bronx supported all eleven, Brooklyn nine, and Manhattan six.
Recent elections
2017
, the incumbent mayor, won re-election to a second term, on Democratic and Working Families Party lines, over challengers Nicole Malliotakis on the Republican and Conservative party lines, Sal Albanese on the Reform Party line, Akeem Browder on the Green Party line, independent candidates Mike Tolkin and Bo Dietl, and Libertarian Party candidate Aaron Commey.2013
The principal candidates were Joe Lhota on the Republican and Conservative lines, Bill de Blasio on the Democratic and Working Families lines, and some independents. Bill de Blasio won the election in a landslide2013 results by borough
Democratic primary election, Tuesday, September 10, 2013Bill de Blasio, the city's elected Public Advocate, won 40.8% of the total Democratic primary vote and, by exceeding 40.0%, avoided an October 1 primary runoff with Bill Thompson, who won the second-highest number of primary votes, or 26.1%. Christine Quinn, the Speaker of the New York City Council, came in third, with 15.7%, while none of the other candidates, including City Comptroller John Liu and former Congressman Anthony Weiner, won as much as 10%. De Blasio carried all five boroughs and Thompson came second in every borough except Manhattan, where he came in third behind Quinn.
From the Board of Elections in the City of New York, September 27, 2013
| 2013 Democratic primary | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Staten Island | Total | % |
| Bill de Blasio | 81,197 | 36,896 | 104,703 | 52,190 | 7,358 | 282,344 | |
| Bill de Blasio | 40.9% | 38.1% | 46.4% | 35.0% | 34.3% | 40.8% | |
| Bill Thompson | 42,720 | 31,617 | 61,471 | 38,162 | 6,871 | 180,841 | |
| Bill Thompson | 21.5% | 32.7% | 27.2% | 25.6% | 32.1% | 26.1% | |
| Christine C. Quinn | 52,102 | 10,392 | 23,007 | 19,847 | 3,545 | 108,893 | |
| Christine C. Quinn | 26.3% | 10.7% | 10.2% | 13.3% | 16.5% | 15.7% | |
| John C. Liu | 10,191 | 4,753 | 13,927 | 16,977 | 1,438 | 47,286 | |
| John C. Liu | 5.1% | 4.9% | 6.2% | 11.4% | 6.7% | 6.8% | |
| Anthony D. Weiner | 6,858 | 5,726 | 10,950 | 9,438 | 1,220 | 34,192 | |
| Anthony D. Weiner | 3.5% | 5.9% | 4.8% | 6.3% | 5.7% | 4.9% | |
| Erick J. Salgado | 2,296 | 3,855 | 5,793 | 3,735 | 235 | 15,914 | 2.3% |
| Randy Credico | 1,588 | 2,301 | 2,351 | 5,129 | 161 | 11,530 | 1.7% |
| Sal F. Albanese | 821 | 581 | 2,346 | 1,648 | 447 | 5,843 | 0.8% |
| Neil V. Grimaldi | 634 | 640 | 1,108 | 2,157 | 138 | 4,677 | 0.7% |
| All Write-ins | 50 | 18 | 172 | 21 | 20 | 281 | 0.04% |
| T O T A L | 198,458 | 96,780 | 225,829 | 149,305 | 21,434 | 691,801 | 100.0% |
| borough percentage of city-wide Democratic vote | 29% | 14% | 33% | 22% | 3% | 100% |
Republican primary election, Tuesday, September 10, 2013
In the Republican primary, Joe Lhota, a former deputy mayor and former chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority carried every borough but Staten Island, which was won by John Catsimatidis, a businessman, publisher and property developer. Catsimatidis, in losing, won nearly as large a percentage of his own party's vote as the Democratic winner, Bill de Blasio won of his. The 61,111 valid votes cast in the Republican primary were less than one-eleventh of the 691,801 cast in the Democratic one held on the same day in the same polling places.
From the Board of Elections in the City of New York, September 27, 2013
| 2013 Republican primary | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Staten Island | Total | % |
| Joe Lhota | 9,211 | 1,860 | 6,995 | 8,758 | 5,412 | 32,236 | 52.7% |
| Joe Lhota | 70.5% | 52.9% | 47.6% | 51.0% | 42.8% | 32,236 | 52.7% |
| John Catsimatidis | 3,139 | 1,281 | 6,723 | 6,945 | 6,776 | 24,864 | 40.7% |
| John Catsimatidis | 24.0% | 36.4% | 45.7% | 40.5% | 53.5% | 24,864 | 40.7% |
| George McDonald | 683 | 369 | 940 | 1,456 | 451 | 3,899 | 6.4% |
| George McDonald | 5.2% | 10.5% | 6.4% | 8.5% | 3.6% | 3,899 | 6.4% |
| all write-in votes | 34 | 8 | 42 | 9 | 19 | 112 | 0.2% |
| T O T A L | 13,067 | 3,518 | 14,700 | 17,168 | 12,658 | 61,111 | 100.0% |
| borough percentage of city-wide Republican vote | 21% | 6% | 24% | 28% | 21% | 100% |
2009
The principal candidates were Mayor Michael Bloomberg, an independent running for the third time on the Republican and Independence Party lines, and New York City Comptroller Bill Thompson, running for the Democratic and Working Families Parties. Bloomberg had enjoyed pluralities of about 9% to 16% in most independent published pre-election polls and on Tuesday, November 3, he won his third term with 50.7% of votes over Thompson's 46%.Other candidates included:
- Steven Christopher of Memorial Baptist Church in Brooklyn, Conservative Party of New York State
- Joseph Dobrian, Libertarian Party of New York
- Reverend Billy Talen of the Church of Life After Shopping, Green Party of New York
- Dan Fein, Socialist Workers Party
- Francisca Villar, Party for Socialism and Liberation
- Jimmy McMillan, Rent Is Too Damn High Party
- Tyrell Eiland, New Voice Party
- Jonny Porkpie, independent
- John M. Finan, independent
Democratic primary, Tuesday, September 15, 2009
From the Board of Elections in the City of New York, September 26, 2009
| 2009 Democratic primary | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Staten Island | Total | % |
| Bill Thompson | 70,881 | 31,950 | 75,519 | 49,063 | 7,484 | 234,897 | 71.0% |
| Bill Thompson | 73.7% | 73.5% | 73.9% | 63.2% | 67.0% | 234,897 | 71.0% |
| Tony Avella | 18,213 | 7,754 | 17,945 | 22,903 | 2,959 | 69,774 | 21.1% |
| Tony Avella | 18.9% | 17.8% | 17.6% | 29.5% | 26.5% | 69,774 | 21.1% |
| Roland Rogers | 6,975 | 3,751 | 8,612 | 5,553 | 700 | 25,591 | 7.7% |
| Roland Rogers | 7.3% | 8.6% | 8.4% | 7.2% | 6.3% | 25,591 | 7.7% |
| all write-in votes | 127 | 10 | 153 | 81 | 26 | 397 | 0.1% |
| all write-in votes | 0.1% | 0.02% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 397 | 0.1% |
| T O T A L | 96,196 | 43,465 | 102,229 | 77,600 | 11,169 | 330,659 |
Tony Avella represents a Queens district on the New York City Council. Out of the nearly 400 write-in votes, almost half or 184 were some form or spelling of Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
2005
In 2005, Mayor Bloomberg won every borough but The Bronx against a Democratic Party split by a divisive primary, in contrast to his first victory in 2001, when Bloomberg carried only Queens and Staten Island.Source: Board of Elections in the City of New York http://www.vote.nyc.ny.us/results.html
2001
The 2001 mayoral election was held on Tuesday, November 6.Republican incumbent Rudy Giuliani could not run again due to term limits. As Democrats outnumber Republicans by 5 to 1 in the city, it was widely believed that a Democrat would succeed him in City Hall. However, billionaire Michael Bloomberg, a lifelong Democrat, changed his party affiliation a few months before the election in order to avoid a crowded primary, and ran as a Republican. The Democratic primary was meant to be held on September 11 but was postponed due to the September 11 attacks; it was instead held on September 25. The primary opened the way to a bitter run-off between the Bronx-born Puerto Rican Fernando Ferrer, and Mark J. Green, a non-Hispanic who attacked Ferrer's close ties to Rev. Al Sharpton, leaving the party divided along racial lines.
Bloomberg spent $74 million on his election campaign, which was a record amount at the time for a non-presidential election. Thanks also in part to active support from Giuliani, whose approval ratings shot up after the September 11 attacks, Bloomberg won a very close general election.
1997
Notes:Giuliani vote was 748,277 Republican and 35,538 Liberal.
Other vote was Sal Albanese -Independence-14,316 1.1%; Peter Gaffney-Right to Life-5,304 0.5%; Olga Rodriguez-Socialist Workers-3,753 0.3%; Dominick Fusco-Fusion- 632; Scattered 293
- In the Democratic Primary, Messinger defeated Rev. Al Sharpton, Sal Albanese and 2 others, avoiding a runoff election.
Past elections
1993
Giuliani vote included 867,767 Republican and 62,469 Liberal. Marlin vote included 9,433 Conservative and 6,493 Right to Life.In addition, there were 2,229 votes for J. Brennan-Libertarian; 2,061 votes for M. Bockman - Socialist Workers and 117 Scattered votes.
Dinkins won Democratic Primary with 336,285 votes to 126,449 for Roy Innis and 35,492 for Eric Melendez
1989
Giuliani vote was 815,387 Republican and 55,077 Liberal.Other vote was 1,732 Lenora Fulani-New Alliance; 1,671-James Harris-Socialist Workers; 1,118 Warren Raum-Libertarian; 435 Mazelis-Workers League.
1985
The Koch vote include 862,226 Democratic and 6,034 Independent votes. The McGrath vote was 79,508 Republican and 22,160 Conservative.Other vote was: Yehuda Levin - Right to Life - 14,517; Lenora Fulani - New Alliance - 7,597;Jarvis Tyner - People Before Profits - 3,370; Andrea Gonzalez - Socialist Workers - 1,677; Gilbert DiLucia - Coalition - 1,135; Marjorie Stanberg - Spartacist - 1,101; Scattered - 9
Koch won the Democratic Primary: Koch-436,151 64.0%; Bellamy - 127,690 18.7%; Denny Farrell - 89,845 13.2%; DiLucia - 11, 627 1.7%; Fred Newman - 8,584 1.2%;
Judah Rubenstein - 8,057 1.2%
1981
Koch had 738,288 Democratic votes and 174,334 Republican votes.Others = 45,485. Jeronimo Dominguez - Right to Life - 32,790 2.7%; Judith Jones - Libertarian - 6,902 0.6%; Wells Todd - Socialist Workers - 5,793 0.5%
Koch won the Democratic Primary with 347,351 votes, defeating Barbaro who had 209,369 votes and Melvin Klenetsky who had 24,352 votes. Koch also won the Republican Primary, defeating Esposito by 44,724 to 22,354.
1977
In his 2005 book Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx Is Burning, historian Jonathan Mahler argues that the New York City blackout of 1977, with its accompanying rioting, enabled the law-and-order advocate Ed Koch to beat out his more left-wing opponents, including incumbent mayor Abe Beame, in the 1977 election.Other vote was: Kenneth F. Newcombe - Communist - 5,300; Catarino Garza - Socialist Workers - 3,294; Vito Battista - United Taxpayers Party - 2,119; Louis Wein - Independent - 1,127; William Lawry - Free Libertarian - 1,068; Elijah Boyd - Labor - 873. Cuomo's total vote included 522,942 Liberal and 64,971 Neighborhood Government.
Runoff-Koch-433,002 55.0%; Cuomo-354,833 45.0% Total vote 787,835
Manhattan-Koch-115,251 65.2%; Cuomo—61,570 34.8%
Bronx-----Koch-69,612 55.7%; Cuomo—55,355 44.3%
Brooklyn—Koch-131,271 53.8%; Cuomo—112,587 46.2%
Queens----Koch-107,033 50.4%; Cuomo—105,522 49.6%
Staten----Koch-9,835 33.1%; Cuomo—19,799 66.9%
Note that the eventual winner, Rep. Ed Koch, could not win a plurality in any of the Five Boroughs for the initial Democratic primary. Rep. Bella Abzug took Manhattan, Mayor Abe Beame Brooklyn, Rep. Herman Badillo the Bronx, and NY Sec. of State Mario Cuomo Queens & Staten Island. In the Democratic run-off with Cuomo, Koch took Queens and three other boroughs, leaving Cuomo with only Staten Island. In the general election, Cuomo kept Staten Island and won back Queens, but lost the other three boroughs to Koch.
In the Republican primary, Roy M. Goodman, a member of the New York State Senate, defeated Barry Farber, a radio commentator, by a vote of 41,131 to 31,078. Farber, however, won the nomination of the Conservative Party of New York and won almost as many votes in the general election as Goodman did as the Republican nominee.
1929 to 1973
Some figures and anecdotes courtesy James Trager's New York Chronology. Other numbers are from The World Almanac and Book of Facts, then published by The New York World-Telegram, for 1943 and [|1957], and from The Encyclopedia of New York City.Before 1975, the present Borough of Staten Island was formally known as The Borough of Richmond.
1973
note: All the candidates except Marchi had run in the Democratic primary. Candidates votes on their second ballot lines included above were: Beame-Civil Service & Fusion -67,277; Marchi-Integrity - 14,271; Blumenthal - Good Government - 29, 335; Biaggi - Safe City - 8,010. Other vote includes 8,818 Fran Youngstein - Free Libertarian Party; 3,601 Rasheed Storey - Communist; 2,282 Norman Oliver - Socialist Workers; 2,000 Anton Chaiken -Labor; 1,762 John Emanuel - Socialist Labor| 1973 Democratic initial primary | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond ' | Total | % |
| Abraham Beame | 46,519 | 42,537 | 98,121 | 74,223 | 9,021 | 270,421 | 34% |
| Abraham Beame | 26% | 27% | 41% | 40% | 42% | 270,421 | 34% |
| Herman Badillo | 74,496 | 57,258 | 58,546 | 34,742 | 2,977 | 228,019 | 29% |
| Herman Badillo | 41% | 36% | 25% | 19% | 14% | 228,019 | 29% |
| Albert H. Blumenthal | 41,794 | 18,713 | 32,412 | 29,173 | 1,814 | 123,906 | 16% |
| Albert H. Blumenthal | 23% | 12% | 14% | 16% | 8% | 123,906 | 16% |
| Mario Biaggi | 18,218 | 39,893 | 48,952 | 45,949 | 7,775 | 160,787 | 21% |
| Mario Biaggi | 10% | 25% | 21% | 25% | 36% | 160,787 | 21% |
| ' | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1973 Democratic run-off primary | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond | Total | % |
| Abraham Beame | 78,760 | 96,590 | 200,945 | 153,377 | 17,844 | 547,626 | 60.8% |
| Abraham Beame | 41% | 53% | 69% | 73% | 79% | 547,626 | 60.8% |
| Herman Badillo | 113,738 | 85,827 | 91,628 | 56,933 | 4,796 | 352,912 | 39.2% |
| Herman Badillo | 59% | 47% | 32% | 27% | 21% | 352,912 | 39.2% |
| T O T A L | 192,598 | 182,417 | 292,573 | 210,310 | 22,640 | 900.538 |
1969
Note: In one of the most unusual primary seasons since the conglomeration of greater New York, the incumbent Mayor and a former incumbent both lost their parties' primaries. Procaccino won with less than 33% of the vote against four opponents, which inspired the use of runoffs in future primaries. In the general election, Lindsay carried Manhattan as he did in 1965, but he was only 4,000 votes ahead of giving first place in Queens to Procaccino. Turnout dropped to 2.4 million from 2.6 million in 1965.The New York Mets' unlikely win in the 1969 World Series and Mayor Lindsay's participation in their postgame celebration may have given the Mayor a late public relations boost which contributed to his victory.
- The Lindsay vote was 872,660 Liberal and 139,973 Independent.
- Procaccino's vote was 774,708 Democratic and 57,064 Civil Service Fusion.
- The Marchi vote was 329,506 Republican and 212,905 Conservative.
- By themselves, the straight Democratic and Republican lines added up to less than 50% of the mayoral vote, but more than the total vote for Lindsay.
- Procaccino's general election votes on the Democratic line alone were slightly fewer than the total votes received by all candidates in the Democratic primary.
- Lindsay's general election votes on the Liberal line alone exceeded Procaccino's total votes on all lines.
1965
1961
Mayor Wagner broke with the regular Democratic organization which had supported him in 1953 and 1957, defeating their candidate, Arthur Levitt, in the Democratic primary 61% to 39%. At the same time, after running successfully with Lawrence Gerosa for Comptroller in the previous two elections, Wagner chose to run instead with Abraham Beame in 1961. Gerosa ran against Wagner for mayor as the "real Democrat" on a pro-taxpayer platform. 211,000 of Wagner's 1,237,000 votes came on the Liberal Party line, and 55,000 on the purpose-built Brotherhood line.Other vote was: Vito Battista - United Taxpayers Party - 19,960; Richard Garza - Socialist Workers - 7,037; Eric Haas - Socialist Labor - 3,272
| 1961 Democratic primary | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond ' | Total | % |
| Robert F. Wagner Jr. | 122,607 | 78,626 | 136,440 | 102,845 | 15,498 | 456,016 | 60.9% |
| Robert F. Wagner Jr. | 65% | 62% | 57% | 62% | 60% | 456,016 | 60.9% |
| Arthur Levitt | 66,917 | 47,885 | 103,296 | 64,157 | 10,471 | 292,726 | 39.1% |
| Arthur Levitt | 35% | 38% | 43% | 38% | 40% | 292,726 | 39.1% |
| subtotal ' | 189,524 | 126,511 | 239,736 | 167,002 | 25,969 | 748,742 |
1957
The Wagner-Christenberry campaign has left us one of the great campaign anecdotes: Christenberry was railing against Wagner's police department for not doing enough to fight corruption and vice, so the cops raided Christenberry's illegal casino in the basement of the hotel he was manager of. Other vote was:; Joyce Cowley - Socialist Workers - 13,453 0.6%; Eric Haas - Socialist Labor- 4,611 0.2%
1953
| 1953 | Party | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond | Total | % |
| Robert F. Wagner Jr. | Democratic | 236,960 | 206,771 | 339,970 | 207,918 | 31,007 | 1,022,626 | 46.3% |
| Robert F. Wagner Jr. | Democratic | 47.9% | 46.2% | 46.6% | 40.6% | 51.8% | 1,022,626 | 46.3% |
| Harold Riegelman | Republican | 147,876 | 97,224 | 183,968 | 208,829 | 23,694 | 661,591 | 30.0% |
| Harold Riegelman | Republican | 29.9% | 21.7% | 25.2% | 40.8% | 39.6% | 661,591 | 30.0% |
| Rudolph Halley | Liberal | 76,884 | 112,825 | 162,275 | 73,192 | 3,514 | 428,690 | 19.4% |
| Rudolph Halley | Independent | 7,648 | 9,853 | 13,264 | 7,356 | 295 | 38,416 | 1.7% |
| Rudolph Halley | Total | 84,532 | 122,678 | 175,539 | 80,548 | 3,809 | 467,106 | 21.1% |
| Rudolph Halley | Total | 17.1% | 27.4% | 24.1% | 15.7% | 6.4% | 467,106 | 21.1% |
| Clifford T. McAvoy | American Labor Party | 14,904 | 13,290 | 17,337 | 7,182 | 332 | 53,045 | 2.4% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Total vote was 2,207,516
Other vote was David L. Weiss-Socialist Workers-2,054 ;Nathan Karp-Industrial Government-916; Scattered-180.
"Industrial Government" is a ballot title sometimes used, to avoid confusion or to meet election laws, by the Socialist Labor Party. The Liberal Party of New York won over five times as many votes as the American Labor Party in Manhattan, and eight-to-ten times as many in the other boroughs. The ALP lost its ballot status after the 1954 Governor's race, and voted to dissolve itself in 1956.
1950
| 1950 | Party | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond | Total | % |
| Vincent Impellitteri | Experience | 246,608 | 215,913 | 357,322 | 303,448 | 37,884 | 1,161,175 | 44.2% |
| Vincent Impellitteri | Experience | 40.4% | 41.3% | 40.5% | 55.5% | 60.0% | 1,161,175 | 44.2% |
| Ferdinand Pecora | Democratic | 166,240 | 157,537 | 271,670 | 104,734 | 11,177 | 711,358 | 27.1% |
| Ferdinand Pecora | Liberal | 48,370 | 59,717 | 90,576 | 24,489 | 841 | 223,993 | 8.5% |
| Ferdinand Pecora | Total | 214,610 | 217,254 | 362,246 | 129,223 | 12,018 | 935,351 | 35.6% |
| Ferdinand Pecora | Total | 35.1% | 41.6% | 41.0% | 23.6% | 19.0% | 935,351 | 35.6% |
| Edward Corsi | Republican | 102,575 | 54,796 | 113,392 | 99,225 | 12,384 | 382,372 | 14.6% |
| Edward Corsi | Republican | 16.8% | 10.5% | 12.8% | 18.1% | 19.6% | 382,372 | 14.6% |
| Paul Ross | American Labor Party | 47,201 | 34,575 | 49,999 | 14,904 | 899 | 147,578 | 5.6% |
| T O T A L | 610,994 | 522,538 | 882,959 | 546,800 | 63,185 | 2,626,476 |
Vincent Impellitteri, the mayor who succeeded mid-term after William O'Dwyer resigned on August 31, 1950, swept Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island in this special election, while Ferdinand Pecora took very narrow leads in The Bronx and Brooklyn. In this election, the Liberals heavily outpolled the American Labor Party in every borough but Manhattan and Staten Island, where the two parties' votes were almost equal.
1949
Other vote was: Eric Haas - Industrial Government - 7,857; Joseph G. Glass - Socialist - 3,396; Michael Bartell - Socialist Workers - 1,224. The Morris vote was 570,713 Republican, 373,287 Liberal and 12,069 Fusion1945
O'Dwyer received 867,426 Democratic votes and 257,929 on the American Labor Party line. The Goldstein vote was 301,144 Republican, 122,316 Liberal and 8,141 City Fusion.The No Deal Party was founded by the retiring maverick Republican Mayor Fiorello La Guardia to draw Republican votes towards Newbold Morris and away from the official Republican Party with whom La Guardia was having a dispute. The No Deal Party dissolved soon after the 1945 election. Newbold Morris was a Republican, while Jonah Goldstein was a Democrat until nomination day.
Other vote was: Joseph G. Glass - Socialist - 9,304; Farrell Dobbs - Trotskyist Anti-War - 3,656; Eric Hass - Socialist Labor - 3,465; Max Shachtman - Workers - 585; Scattered - 45.
1941
As in 1937, more voters in every borough voted on the Democratic line than on any other single line; but this time the Democrat carried Queens and Staten Island over La Guardia, shrinking the Mayor's overall citywide percentage lead from 20% to 6%. As in 1937, La Guardia's overall margin of victory depended on the American Labor Party, which again won more votes than the Republicans in The Bronx. While the total vote and Republican vote were almost identical in 1937 and 1941, the ALP line lost 47,000 votes, almost entirely from Manhattan and Brooklyn, as the vote on La Guardia's other lines dropped from 187,000 to 86,000. The Democratic Party gained about 160,000 votes lost by La Guardia. In both Queens and Richmond, the swing was even greater: La Guardia lost over 15% of the total vote from 1937, as his lead there flipped from roughly 56%-44% to 39%-60%.1937
Note that the leading line in every borough, and in the City as a whole, is the Democratic line for Judge Mahoney. Running on the Republican line alone, Mayor La Guardia would have lost every borough, but he carried all five when the American Labor Party line was added. The ALP line did better than the Republican line in The Bronx, although worse than the Democratic one.There were also 2,307 votes for Emil Teichert on the Industrial Government line.
1933
While opposed by Tammany Hall, McKee enjoyed the support of Democratic President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who declared neutrality when his ally Mayor La Guardia was running for reelection in #1937. According to Michael Tomasky, La Guardia, who had lost the #1921 Republican Mayoral primary to Manhattan Borough President Henry Curran, did not enjoy the support of a united Republican Party when he won the party's nomination and lost the general election in #1929, but was able to win over Republican organizational support in 1933.The 1933 LaGuardia vote was 446,833 Republican and 421,689 City Fusion. The O'Brien vote was 570,937 Democratic and 15,735 Jeffersonian.
There were also 1,778 votes for Henry Klein-Five Cent Fare & Taxpayers; 472 for Aaron Orange - Socialist Labor; and 118 for Adolph Silver - Independent Union.
Collapse of the Socialist Party vote
In 1933, a year that might otherwise have favored the Socialist Party's chances, the New Deal began, Morris Hillquit died, Norman Thomas refused to run again for mayor, and the Socialist vote collapsed irretrievably from a quarter of a million to sixty thousand. Many supporters of Thomas's 1929 campaign defected to support Fiorello La Guardia. By the time of the next mayoral election in 1937, which the Socialist Party decided by internal referendum not to contest, many reformers and trade-unionists who wanted to support major-party progressives like La Guardia, Gov. Herbert Lehman and Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt from outside the two-party structure backed the American Labor Party, the Social Democratic Federation and later the Liberal Party of New York. After a disastrous gubernatorial campaign in 1938, the Socialist Party lost its separate line on the New York ballot, allowed its members to join the ALP, and indeed encouraged them to do so. In 1939, the Socialist Harry W. Laidler, a co-founder of the and League for Industrial Democracy, was elected to the New York City Council on the ALP's ticket, but lost its renomination two years later because of rivalry with the Communists.- '
† and in 1897, Lucien Sanial was the mayoral candidate of the Socialist Labor Party before both the SLP and the Social Democratic Party each split in two. In 1901, one faction of the SLP, led by Morris Hillquit, and one faction of the SDP, led by Eugene V. Debs, united to form the Socialist Party of America, which soon drew away many votes formerly cast for the SLP. For further details, see Hillquit's History of Socialism in the United States and Howard Quint's Forging of American Socialism, both cited in the #References at the end of this article.
1932
Totals after a court-ordered recount:| Year | Candidate | Party | Total | percent |
| 1932 | John P. O'Brien | Democratic | ' | |
| 1932 | Lewis H. Pounds | Republican | ' | |
| 1932 | Morris Hillquit | Socialist | ' | |
| 1932 | Joseph V. McKee | Independent/Write-in | ' |
Joseph V. McKee, as the President of the Board of Aldermen, became Acting Mayor upon the resignation of elected Mayor Jimmy Walker on September 1, 1932. McKee's write-in total is, in fact, the highest any New York City election would ever see. For the election after the next one, voting machines which would make write-in voting much more difficult were introduced. Machines of this basic design are still being used.
Lewis Humphrey Pounds was President of the Borough of Brooklyn from June 1913 to December 1917.
This was the last of many campaigns for different offices by Morris Hillquit, a co-founder of the Socialist Party of America, who died in 1933. Hillquit had won over 21% of the vote for mayor in 1917.
- Borough returns before the recount :
| 1932 | Party | Manhattan | The Bronx | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond | Total | % |
| John P. O'Brien | Democratic | 308,944 | 181,639 | 358,945 | 176,070 | 30,517 | 1,056,115 | 53.2% |
| John P. O'Brien | Democratic | 60.0% | 50.2% | 50.1% | 47.6% | 54.1% | 1,056,115 | 53.2% |
| Lewis H. Pounds | Republican | 116,729 | 48,366 | 157,152 | 105,068 | 16,586 | 443,901 | 22.0% |
| Lewis H. Pounds | Republican | 22.7% | 13.4% | 21.9% | 28.4% | 29.4% | 443,901 | 22.0% |
| Morris Hillquit | Socialist | 40,011 | 68,980 | 113,622 | 24,981 | 2,293 | 249,887 | 12.4% |
| Morris Hillquit | Socialist | 7.8% | 19.1% | 15.8% | 6.8% | 4.1% | 249,887 | 12.4% |
| Joseph V. McKee | Independent | 42,299 | 50,212 | 73,431 | 61,648 | 6,782 | 234,372 | 11.6% |
| Joseph V. McKee | Independent | 8.2% | 13.9% | 10.2% | 16.7% | 12.0% | 234,372 | 11.6% |
| T O T A L | 514,661 | 361,612 | 716,963 | 370,018 | 56,414 | 2,019,668 |
There were also 24,014 votes 1.2% for William Patterson - Communist and 11,379 0.5% for Olive Johnson - Socialist Labor
1929
There were also 5,805 votes for William Weinstone - Communist and 320 votes for Lawrence Tracy - Commonwealth Land.The great stock market crash hit Wall Street on October 24–29, 1929, less than two weeks before Election Day. Richard Edward Enright was New York City Police Commissioner from 1918 to 1925.
1897 to 1925
¶ Basic numbers for the elections of 1897 to 1925 come from The World Almanac and Book of Facts for 1929 and 1943. Percentages and borough totals calculated independently. First names and informational links gathered from Wikipedia and several external sources, including the free public archive of The New York Times.1925
Mayor Hylan, an ally of the newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst, was unseated in a venomous Democratic primary by "Gentleman" Jimmy Walker, the Democratic party leader in the New York State Senate, who had been recruited to oppose Hylan by Hearst's inveterate enemy, Democratic Governor Al Smith. After the death of Tammany Hall leader Charles F. Murphy in 1924, the regular Democratic organizations also split their allegiances, with Hylan receiving support from John McCooey, the leader in Brooklyn, and Walker from Ed Flynn of the Bronx.There
1921
Henry Curran was the borough president of Manhattan and heavily defeated Fiorello H. La Guardia, president of the board of aldermen, in the Republican primary election for mayor. There was also 454 votes for Joseph Miller on the Single Tax Line and 443 votes for Benjamin Gitlow on the Workers League Line1917
Notes: The Single Tax on land values was the proposal and platform of Henry George, who ran for mayor in 1897 and 1886. D. Leigh Colvin later contested the U.S. presidential election of 1936 for the Prohibition Party.The Fall 1917 election would have been exciting even had it occurred in peacetime. In September, the City held its first-ever primary elections for mayor. The sitting independent Mayor, John P. Mitchel, who had enjoyed Republican support under Fusion in 1913, narrowly lost the Republican primary to William Bennett, after mistakes and frauds led to a series of recounts. When negotiations between the parties failed, Mitchel ran alone as a Fusion candidate against Bennett, the Socialist Morris Hillquit and John F. Hylan, the regular Democrat supported by Tammany Hall and William Randolph Hearst.
However, the elections happened after the United States had declared war on April 6. Hillquit and the Socialist Party quickly and vigorously opposed the war, which Mitchel vigorously supported. Hillquit's anti-war position helped the Socialists win their highest-ever vote for mayor, but also led to vitriolic denunciations by many, including The New York Times and former President Theodore Roosevelt. Mitchel and Hillquit each won less than quarter of the vote, while Hylan, who had been non-committal about the war, won the election with less than half the vote. However, as in 1897, the numbers suggest that Tammany Hall might have won even against a unified opposition.
1897 to 1913
¶ The Bronx and Manhattan, although separate Boroughs since 1898, shared New York County and reported their votes together until Bronx County was formed in April 1912 and came into its separate existence on January 1, 1914.| 1913 | Party | The Bronx and Manhattan | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond ' | Total | % |
| John Purroy Mitchel | Fusion | 178,224 | 137,074 | 34,279 | 8,604 | 358,181 | 57.1% |
| John Purroy Mitchel | Fusion | 54.7% | 60.2% | 59.6% | 54.4% | 358,181 | 57.1% |
| Edward E. McCall | Democratic | 129,113 | 77,826 | 20,097 | 6,883 | 233,919 | 37.3% |
| Edward E. McCall | Democratic | 39.6% | 34.2% | 35.0% | 43.3% | 233,919 | 37.3% |
| Charles Edward Russell | Socialist | 17,383 | 11,560 | 2,865 | 249 | 32,057 | 5.1% |
| William Walters | Socialist Labor | 952 | 538 | 129 | 28 | 1,647 | 0.3% |
| Norman Raymond | Prohibition | 412 | 587 | 118 | 96 | 1,213 | 0.2% |
| TOTAL | 326,084 | 227,585 | 57,488 | 15,860 | 627,017 |
Mayor William Jay Gaynor, who had survived being shot in the throat by a disappointed office-seeker in 1910, died at sea from the indirect effects of his injury on September 10, 1913. He was succeeded for the rest of 1913 by Ardolph Loges Kline, the acting president of the board of aldermen.
| 1909 | Party | The Bronx and Manhattan | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond ' | Total | % |
| William Jay Gaynor | Democratic | 134,075 | 91,666 | 17,570 | 7,067 | 250,378 | 42.1% |
| William Jay Gaynor | Democratic | 42.5% | 41.9% | 38.4% | 47.1% | 250,378 | 42.1% |
| William Randolph Hearst | Civic Alliance | 87,155 | 49,040 | 15,186 | 2,806 | 154,187 | 25.9% |
| William Randolph Hearst | Civic Alliance | 27.6% | 22.4% | 33.2% | 18.7% | 154,187 | 25.9% |
| Otto T. Bannard | Republican - Fusion | 86,497 | 73,860 | 11,907 | 5,049 | 177,313 | 29.8% |
| Otto T. Bannard | Republican - Fusion | 27.4% | 33.8% | 26.0% | 33.6% | 177,313 | 29.8% |
| Joseph Cassidy | Socialist | 6,811 | 3,874 | 1,004 | 79 | 11,768 | 2.0% |
| James T. Hunter | Socialist Labor | 813 | 369 | 56 | 18 | 1,256 | 0.2% |
| TOTAL | 315,351 | 218,809 | 45,723 | 15,019 | 594,902 | ||
| 1905 | Party | The Bronx and Manhattan | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond ' | Total | % |
| George B. McClellan Jr. | Democratic | 140,264 | 68,788 | 13,228 | 6,127 | 228,407 | 37.8% |
| George B. McClellan Jr. | Democratic | 41.6% | 31.4% | 37.6% | 44.1% | 228,407 | 37.8% |
| William Randolph Hearst | Municipal Ownership League | 123,292 | 84,835 | 13,766 | 3,096 | 224,989 | 37.2% |
| William Randolph Hearst | Municipal Ownership League | 36.6% | 38.8% | 39.2% | 22.3% | 224,989 | 37.2% |
| William Mills Ivins Sr. | Republican | 64,280 | 61,192 | 7,213 | 4,499 | 137,184 | 22.7% |
| William Mills Ivins Sr. | Republican | 19.1% | 28.0% | 20.5% | 32.4% | 137,184 | 22.7% |
| Algernon Lee | Socialist | 7,466 | 3,387 | 847 | 117 | 11,817 | 2.0% |
| John Kinneally | Socialist Labor | 1,485 | 657 | 95 | 39 | 2,276 | 0.4% |
| TOTAL | 336,787 | 218,859 | 35,149 | 13,878 | 604,673 | ||
| 1903 | Party | The Bronx and Manhattan | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond ' | Total | % |
| George B. McClellan Jr. | Democratic | 188,681 | 102,569 | 17,074 | 6,458 | 314,782 | 53.4% |
| George B. McClellan Jr. | Democratic | 56.1% | 48.8% | 56.5% | 48.1% | 314,782 | 53.4% |
| Seth Low | Fusion | 132,178 | 101,251 | 11,960 | 6,697 | 252,086 | 42.7% |
| Seth Low | Fusion | 39.3% | 48.2% | 39.6% | 49.9% | 252,086 | 42.7% |
| Charles Forman | Social Democratic | 11,318 | 4,529 | 976 | 133 | 16,956 | 2.9% |
| James T. Hunter | Socialist Labor | 3,540 | 1,411 | 178 | 76 | 5,205 | 0.9% |
| John McKee | Prohibition | 376 | 396 | 47 | 50 | 869 | 0.1% |
| TOTAL | 336,093 | 210,156 | 30,235 | 13,414 | 589,898 | ||
| 1901 | Party | The Bronx and Manhattan | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond ' | Total | % |
| Edward M. Shepard | Democratic | 156,631 | 88,858 | 13,679 | 6,009 | 265,177 | 45.8% |
| Edward M. Shepard | Democratic | 47.4% | 42.7% | 49.4% | 46.1% | 265,177 | 45.8% |
| Seth Low | Fusion | 162,298 | 114,625 | 13,118 | 6,772 | 296,813 | 51.2% |
| Seth Low | Fusion | 49.1% | 55.0% | 47.4% | 51.9% | 296,813 | 51.2% |
| Benjamin Hanford | Social Democratic | 6,409 | 2,692 | 613 | 120 | 9,834 | 1.7% |
| Benjamin F. Keinard | Socialist Labor | 4,323 | 1,638 | 181 | 71 | 6,213 | 1.1% |
| Alfred L. Manierre | Prohibition | 617 | 501 | 74 | 72 | 1,264 | 0.2% |
| TOTAL | 330,278 | 208,314 | 27,665 | 13,044 | 579,301 | ||
| 1897 | Party | The Bronx and Manhattan | Brooklyn | Queens | Richmond ' | Total | % |
| Robert A. Van Wyck | Democratic | 143,666 | 76,185 | 9,275 | 4,871 | 233,997 | 44.7% |
| Robert A. Van Wyck | Democratic | 48.0% | 40.1% | 40.7% | 43.5% | 233,997 | 44.7% |
| Seth Low | Citizens' Union | 77,210 | 65,656 | 5,876 | 2,798 | 151,540 | 28.9% |
| Seth Low | Citizens' Union | 25.8% | 34.6% | 25.8% | 25.0% | 151,540 | 28.9% |
| Benjamin F. Tracy | Republican | 55,834 | 37,611 | 5,639 | 2,779 | 101,863 | 19.5% |
| Benjamin F. Tracy | Republican | 18.6% | 19.8% | 24.7% | 24.8% | 101,863 | 19.5% |
| † Henry George | Jefferson Democracy | 13,076 | 6,938 | 1,096 | 583 | 21,693 | 4.1% |
| Lucien Sanial | Socialist Labor | 9,796 | 3,593 | 921 | 157 | 14,467 | 2.8% |
| TOTAL | 299,582 | 189,983 | 22,807 | 11,188 | 523,560 |
The election of 1897 was held just before the Five Boroughs formally consolidated into Greater New York in 1898, so it was the present city's first mayoral election. For preliminary results for all the municipal offices, broken down into smaller districts, see in The New York Times, November 4, 1897.
† Henry George, author of Progress and Poverty and proponent of the Single Tax on land, died on October 29, four days before Election Day; his son was nominated to take his place representing "The Democracy of Thomas Jefferson".
For Lucien Sanial, see the table notes under #Collapse of the Socialist Party vote above and in The New York Times for Wednesday, November 4, 1894, page 19.
It appears from the percentages to be an open question whether the Republican Party's decision in 1897 not to support Seth Low's Fusion campaign caused his defeat by splitting the vote against Tammany Hall. Republicans withdrew in Low's favor in 1901 and in 1903.