The1966 New York state election was held on November 8, 1966, to elect thegovernor, thelieutenant governor, thestate comptroller, theattorney general and theChief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals, as well as all members of theNew York State Assembly and theNew York State Senate. Besides, 15 delegates-at-large to theNew York State Constitutional Convention of 1967 were elected on the state ticket, and three delegates each in the 57 senatorial districts.
Chief JudgeCharles S. Desmond would reach the constitutional age limit of 70 years at the end of the year.
In 1965, theNew York State Assembly districts had been re-apportioned to 165 numbered districts. This was ruled to be unconstitutional in 1966, and the number was reduced to 150 for this election.[1]
TheSocialist Labor state convention met on April 3, and nominated Milton Herder, owner of aManhattan advertising agency, for governor; Doris Ballantyne 2d, a bookkeeper in the party's national office, for lieutenant governor; and John Emanuel for comptroller.[2]
TheSocialist Workers Party met on July 24, and nominated Judith White, a "28-year-old brunette," for governor; Richard Garza for lieutenant governor; Ralph Levitt for comptroller; and taxi driver Paul Boutelle for attorney general.[3] They filed a petition to nominate candidates in September.[4] If the age was given correctly, Judith White was actually ineligible for the office; since 1822, thestate Constitution requires a minimum age of thirty years to be elected governor.[5]
TheConservative state convention met on September 7 atSaratoga Springs, New York, and nominated Prof.Paul L. Adams, an enrolled Republican, for governor; Kieran O'Doherty for lieutenant governor; Benjamin R. Crosby, ofRiverdale, for comptroller; and Mason L. Hampton, Jr., for attorney general; and endorsed the Republican senior associate judge Stanley H. Fuld for chief judge.[6]
TheDemocratic state convention met on September 7 atBuffalo, New York, and nominatedNew York City Council President Frank O'Connor for governor on the first ballot. Howard J. Samuels was the only other contender.[7] The convention met again on September 8, and nominated Samuels for lieutenant governor, revolting against the party bosses who had selected Orin Lehman. They completed the ticket withMayor of Buffalo, New York Frank A. Sedita for attorney general; re-nominated the incumbent Comptroller Levitt; and endorsed the Republican senior associate judge Stanley H. Fuld for chief judge.[8]
TheRepublican state convention met on September 8 atRochester, New York, and renominated the incumbents Rockefeller, Wilson and Lefkowitz; and completed the ticket withOneida County Executive Charles T. Lanigan for comptroller; and senior associate judge Stanley H. Fuld for chief judge.[9]
TheLiberal state convention met on September 8, and nominated Franklin D. Roosevelt, Jr., for governor on the first ballot, polling 209 out of 312 votes. They also nominated the Rev. Donald S. Harrington for lieutenant governor; for attorney general; and endorsed the Democratic incumbent comptroller Levitt for re-election and the Republican senior associate judge Stanley H. Fuld for chief judge.[10]
Almost the whole Republican ticket was elected, and only the Democratic comptroller Levitt managed to stay in office with the help of the Liberals.
The incumbents Rockefeller, Wilson, Levitt and Lefkowitz were re-elected.
| Office | Republican ticket | Democratic ticket | Conservative ticket | Liberal ticket | Socialist Labor ticket | Socialist Workers ticket | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | Nelson A. Rockefeller | 2,690,626 | Frank D. O'Connor | 2,298,363 | Paul L. Adams | 513,023 | Franklin D. Roosevelt, Jr. | 507,234 | Milton Herder[11] | 12,730 | Judith White | 12,506 |
| Lieutenant Governor | Malcolm Wilson | Howard J. Samuels | Kieran O'Doherty[12] | Donald S. Harrington | Doris Ballantyne | Richard Garza[13] | ||||||
| Comptroller | Charles T. Lanigan[14] | 1,861,450 | Arthur Levitt | 3,084,981 | Benjamin R. Crosby | 331,467 | Arthur Levitt | 225,124 | John Emanuel[15] | 11,177 | Ralph Levitt[16] | 14,609 |
| Attorney General | Louis J. Lefkowitz | 3,062,355 | Frank A. Sedita | 2,033,981 | Mason L. Hampton, Jr.[17] | 322,693 | Simeon Golar[18] | 284,813 | (none) | Paul Boutelle | 12,333 | |
| Chief Judge | Stanley H. Fuld | 2,341,483 | Stanley H. Fuld | 2,389,789 | Stanley H. Fuld | 326,377 | Stanley H. Fuld | 365,575 | (none) | (none) | ||
Note: The vote for governor is used to defineballot access; for automatic access are necessary 50,000 votes.
The delegates-at-large were elected on party lists; the candidates' names did not appear on the ballot.[19]
99 Democrats, 82 Republicans, three Liberals and two Conservatives were declared elected to theNew York State Constitutional Convention of 1967; among them 10 Democrats, three Liberals (Harrington, Dubinsky, Rose) and two Republicans at-large. One Democratic seat in the 33rd District (The Bronx) was contested in the courts, and theNew York Court of Appeals declared it a tie, ordering a special election which was won by a Republican. Thus the convention had a Democratic/Liberal majority of 101 against 85 Republicans and Conservatives. The new state constitution proposed by this body was ultimately rejected by the voters at the subsequent election.
| Democratic ticket | Republican ticket | Liberal ticket | Conservative ticket |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robert F. Wagner, Jr. | Frank C. Moore | Robert F. Wagner, Jr. | Frank C. Moore |
| Don M. Mankiewicz | William E. Bensley[20] | Don M. Mankiewicz | William E. Bensley |
| Arthur Levitt, Jr. | Amory Houghton | Arthur Levitt, Jr. | Amory Houghton |
| Donald S. Harrington | Kenneth B. Keating | Donald S. Harrington | |
| Marietta Tree | William F. Walsh | Marietta Tree | |
| David Dubinsky | Russell Niles[21] | David Dubinsky | |
| Bernard Botein[22] | Clifford Furnas[23] | Bernard Botein | |
| Henry L. Ughetta;[24] | William Hughes Mulligan | Henry L. Ughetta | |
| Alan K. Campbell | Edward J. Speno | Alan K. Campbell | |
| Alex Rose | Ruth Gross[25] | Alex Rose | |
| William J. vanden Heuvel | Ronnie Foster[26] | William J. vanden Heuvel | |
| Andrew R. Tyler[27] | Santiago Grevi[28] | Andrew R. Tyler | |
| Antonia Pantoja | Sandy Ray[29] | Antonia Pantoja | |
| John H. Doerr[30] | J. Lee Rankin | J. Lee Rankin | |
| Monroe Goldwater | Jacob K. Javits | Jacob K. Javits | Edward Diedrich |
New York Red Book 1967
