1945 New York City Council election

1945 New York City Council election
November 6, 1945

The 1945 New York City Council election was held on November 6, 1945, to elect members of the New York City Council. The election was held concurrently with the 1945 New York City mayoral election.

The election was the last to use a system of proportional representation with the single transferable vote. The system had been adopted in 1936 and was used for council elections from 1937 until it was repealed by referendum in 1947.[1][2][3][4]

Under this system, council members were elected from large multi-member borough constituencies, which allowed representation for smaller parties such as the American Labor Party and the Communist Party USA.[5]

Communist Party councillors Peter Cacchione of Brooklyn At-Large, and Benjamin J. Davis Jr. of Manhattan At-Large were among the prominent members associated with the proportional representation era and were reelected during this period.[6][7]

Borough constituencies

Under the proportional representation system, councillors were elected from borough-wide constituencies.

Elected members

Members elected, for terms commencing January 1 1946 included:

See also

References

  1. ^ "Proportional Representation in New York City". Michigan Law Review. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  2. ^ Allen, Joe (September 13, 2023). "Lessons from the history of proportional representation in America". Protect Democracy. Retrieved February 4, 2026.
  3. ^ Gottlieb, Martin (August 11, 1991). "THE REGION; The 'Golden Age' of the City Council". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  4. ^ Prosterman, Daniel O. (2013). "The Politics of Electoral Reform in New York City History". Defining Democracy: Electoral Reform and the Struggle for Power in New York City. Oxford Academic. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195377736.003.0002.
  5. ^ "New York City's Experiment with Proportional Representation". FairVote. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  6. ^ "CACCHIONE DEAD; COUNCIL MEMBER; First Avowed Communist Ever to Hold Elective Office in State Victim of a Heart Attack". The New York Times. New York. November 7, 1947. Retrieved July 15, 2025.
  7. ^ "Benjamin J. Davis Jr". Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  8. ^ "Palestin, Ira J.". OurCampaigns.com. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  9. ^ Soyer, Daniel (2021). Left in the Center: The Liberal Party of New York and the Rise and Fall of American Social Democracy. Cornell University Press. p. 51. ISBN 9781501759888. JSTOR 10.7591/j.ctv1hw3x50.2.
  10. ^ "Connolly, Eugene P." OurCampaigns.com. Archived from the original on November 9, 2014. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
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