On a warm, clear afternoon in June 1926, 600 Westchester County Republican delegates gathered in the art deco casino at Playland Amusement Park on Long Island Sound to endorse their neighbor, state Supreme Court Justice William F. Bleakley (1883–1969), for New York Governor. [Read more…] about Reluctant Warriors of 1936: William Bleakley & Herbert Lehman
Elections
16 Socialists Poised for State Legislature, Most in New York State History
At least seven Democratic Socialist candidates have won primary elections for the New York Legislature in districts considered safe in November. The primary sweep included multiple victories over incumbent Democrats and in competitive open seats.
Not only will it more than double the socialist contingent in the state house to 16 across both chambers, it will mark the largest socialist contingent in the state legislature in New York history. [Read more…] about 16 Socialists Poised for State Legislature, Most in New York State History
The Voting Rights Act & The Great Betrayal of 1877
On April 24, 1877, on orders from President Rutherford B. Hayes, federal troops withdrew from the state house in Louisiana — the last federally defended state house in the South — just 12 years after the end of the Civil War.
This withdrawal marked the end of Reconstruction and paved the way for the unrestrained resurgence of white supremacist rule in the South, carrying with it the rapid deterioration of political rights for Black Americans.
What began with Hayes’s elevation to the Presidency following the disputed Election of 1876, is now having dramatic political consequences 150 years later. [Read more…] about The Voting Rights Act & The Great Betrayal of 1877
Adirondack Park Agency Relocation Comes Down to the Wire
Ready or not, the 2026 elections have arrived. Villages across New York State will elect local leaders on March 18th. In the Adirondack Village of Saranac Lake, the election is hinging in part on plans by New York’s Adirondack Park Agency to relocate it’s headquarters.
Nearly four years ago, Park Agency staff approached Saranac Lake’s newly-elected mayor, Jimmy Williams, with a request to explore leasing and refurbishing a village-owned office building and erecting an accompanying structure on the same property for a new agency headquarters. [Read more…] about Adirondack Park Agency Relocation Comes Down to the Wire
Will He Or Won’t He? Charles Evans Hughes in 1906
On January 4, 1906 The Argus of Albany offered its readers a nugget of political wit. “The insurance office boy who receives your card is likely to reply, nowadays, ‘The boss can’t see nobody. He is busy writing his resignation.’”
New York City lawyer Charles Evans Hughes had just completed his work during the investigation of the life insurance industry on behalf of the state’s legislature (part of the Armstrong Investigation). Hughes, born in Glens Falls, was eager to get as far from the Albany quagmire as possible. [Read more…] about Will He Or Won’t He? Charles Evans Hughes in 1906
Peter Bauer on the Latest ‘Forever Wild’ Amendment
On Election Day 2025, New Yorkers voted to pass Proposal 1, to amend Article 14, Section 1, the famed “Forever Wild” clause of the New York State Constitution, to authorize development of certain facilities on Forest Preserve lands as part of the Mount Van Hoevenberg Winter Olympic Sports Complex near Lake Placid in the Adirondack Park. [Read more…] about Peter Bauer on the Latest ‘Forever Wild’ Amendment
A Call to Arms: Schenectady’s Committee of Correspondence
In 1775, rumors of a catalyzing crisis had reached Schenectady, NY. By this point, there had long been disputes between Britain and the American Colonies.
In January of the previous year, many people in Schenectady had taken to the streets to raise a Liberty Flag, a statement of vague but spirited resistance to the distant dictates of Parliament. [Read more…] about A Call to Arms: Schenectady’s Committee of Correspondence
Charles Frederic Adams: Man Against the Machine
On a cool, moist, spring evening in 1904, the outspoken lawyer and idealist Charles Frederic Adams (1851-1918) was traveling from his home in Brooklyn, by trolley and on foot, to a Milton Literary Society dinner in Manhattan. (He feared riding in automobiles.) But when crossing at an intersection, he was struck by a car and injured his back and scalp.
The driver of the vehicle stopped briefly, then sped off as a police officer tried to give chase. But scrupulous about obligations, Charles left the hospital he was taken to, and continued on to his dinner engagement. Only when he became ill there, would he let his friends help him home, where he took a few weeks to heal. [Read more…] about Charles Frederic Adams: Man Against the Machine
1907: Theodore Roosevelt Calls for Campaign Finance Reform
What follows is part of an annual address to Congress by Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) given December 3, 1907. Roosevelt served as Governor of New York State (1899-1900) and President of the United States (1901 to 1909):
Under our form of government voting is not merely a right but a duty, and, moreover, a fundamental and necessary duty if a man is to be a good citizen. It is well to provide that corporations shall not contribute to Presidential or National campaigns, and furthermore to provide for the publication of both contributions and expenditures. [Read more…] about 1907: Theodore Roosevelt Calls for Campaign Finance Reform
A Millionaire Runs for Governor: Hearst & The 1906 Independence League
Millionaire publisher William Randolph Hearst (1863-1951) did not make the short list of candidates which The Argus of Albany, recommended for the Democratic nomination for governor in 1906.
The Argus, a Democratic-aligned newspaper, opposed Hearst because of his fusion strategy, seeking to run on multiple party lines. [Read more…] about A Millionaire Runs for Governor: Hearst & The 1906 Independence League
Oaths of Office: A Primer
Oaths of office date back at least to the time of ancient Rome, and, since then oaths have become a staple of representative government. Oaths have been a requirement for public office from the nation’s inception.
“An Act to regulate the Time and Manner of administering certain Oaths” was the first law passed by the United States Congress after the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. It was signed by President George Washington on June 1, 1789, and parts of it remain in effect to this day. [Read more…] about Oaths of Office: A Primer
Stuffing the Ballot Box: It’s Nothing New in American Politics
It was a cold wintry night in early January 1793 in Upstate New York when a trio of political operatives reined in their horses at the home of John Van Alen. The two story wood framed farmhouse stood in newly formed Rensselaer County on the east side of Hudson River.
One of the men, John Van Valkenburgh struggled with a box and several canvas bound books. Once inside the house, the weary Dutchman was approached by Van Alen’s wife, lugging a large chest. Anne Van Alen suggested the chest could be used to store the important items Van Valkenburgh was manhandling. [Read more…] about Stuffing the Ballot Box: It’s Nothing New in American Politics
What Does The Election of 1800 Have To Do With 2024?
Although historians generally disagree, many people think history repeats itself. Are there any parallels between the Election of 1800 and the contest for the presidency in 2024?
John Adams and Thomas Jefferson had been debating different viewpoints about the Constitution since they first worked on the Declaration of Independence in 1776. Adams feared giving the people too much control while Jefferson thought the presidency had too much power. [Read more…] about What Does The Election of 1800 Have To Do With 2024?
Utica Pollster John Zogby Subject of New Documentary
Utica resident John Zogby is the son of an undocumented immigrant from Lebanon and a politically astute Lebanese mother.
A new documentary film follows his upbringing in East Utica and his journey to becoming a globally renowned political pollster. [Read more…] about Utica Pollster John Zogby Subject of New Documentary
Voter Registration Day: Register Now, Check Your Registration, Encourage Others
New York Almanack hopes you’ll be more than just great readers. We want you to be informed citizens and engaged members of your communities — and a part of that is being a voter.
National Voter Registration Day occurred this week and with elections happening across the county and election day fast approaching, here are some resources to help you get ready to vote. [Read more…] about Voter Registration Day: Register Now, Check Your Registration, Encourage Others
FDR and Wall Street: Words with Actual Action
The American government has always been corrupt, yet the levels of corruption have varied from time to time. There has always been an element of dark money and insider trading going on, though what is happening now in the 21st century is beyond anything that ever came before.
Everyone in power, or running to get some, seems to be cashing in. That one billion dollars has already been spent by corporate interests in order to influence where hundreds of billions of taxpayer’s money will be spent after this election speaks to this fact. [Read more…] about FDR and Wall Street: Words with Actual Action
Wanna Bet? Election Wagering Is Nothing New
Billionaire Peter Thiel-funded Polymarket, an online crypto-based prediction market that accepts bets on electoral outcomes (among other things) is expected to have $1 billion wagered on the presidential race between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris by election day.
That may be a record for election wagering, but betting on politics is nothing new. Wagering on election outcomes is probably as old as elections themselves, and was particularly popular in the United States until it was outlawed. [Read more…] about Wanna Bet? Election Wagering Is Nothing New
Speaker Heck: A Republican’s Long NYS Assembly Tenure
Oswald D. “Ozzie” Heck was Speaker of the New York State Assembly for 22 years, longer than anyone else.
For everyone but the very few who find the state legislature a topic of passing interest, though, he is best known as the eponym of the of the state-owned day-use island off Assembly Point on Lake George, which for most of its history was known as South Island. [Read more…] about Speaker Heck: A Republican’s Long NYS Assembly Tenure
Essex and Saratoga Counties Have Picked The Winner In The Last 7 Presidential Elections
2024 is a Presidential election year. It’s worth noting that we’re seeing something highly unusual in American life in the North Country. Two Adirondack counties, Saratoga and Essex, are among a handful of counties of more than 3,100 counties across the United States to have voted for the winner in each of the last seven Presidential elections from 1996 to 2020. [Read more…] about Essex and Saratoga Counties Have Picked The Winner In The Last 7 Presidential Elections
Election Anxiety Old & New: Troy’s 1894 ‘Revolver Caucus’
There is good and bad news when it comes to elections and the universal right to vote. Our American history recalls many marginalized groups shut out of the polling booth until very recent times.
That list included African-Americans, indigenous peoples, women, youth, and the disabled, with the US Congress’s Voting Rights Act of 1965 one key milestone expanding that sacred right (although it was substantially weakened by the US Supreme Court in 2013 and 2021). [Read more…] about Election Anxiety Old & New: Troy’s 1894 ‘Revolver Caucus’