The 1920 New York state election was held on November 2, 1920, to elect the governor, the lieutenant governor, the secretary state, the state comptroller, the attorney general, the state treasurer, the state engineer, two judges of the New York Court of Appeals and a U.S. senator, as well as all members of the New York State Assembly and the New York State Senate.

History In August 1919, Judge William H. Cuddeback died, and Abram I. Elkus was appointed to fill the vacancy temporarily. Judge Frederick Collin would reach the constitutional age limit at the end of the year. Thus there were two vacancies on the Court of Appeals to be filled at the state election.

The primaries were held on September 14.

Republican primary +1920 Republican primary results Office GovernorNathan L. Miller 270,963George F. Thompson 143,040Lieutenant GovernorJeremiah Wood 265,326William M. Bennett 123,661Secretary of StateJohn J. Lyons 274,342Robert R. Lawson 104,325ComptrollerJames A. Wendell 300,253Walter Worth 73,020Attorney GeneralCharles D. Newton 365,034(unopposed)TreasurerN. Monroe Marshall 197,083Theodore T. Baylor 147,662John P. Donohue 34,325State EngineerFrank M. Williams 364,429(unopposed)Judge of the Court of AppealsEmory A. Chase (unopposed)Judge of the Court of AppealsFrederick E. Crane (unopposed)U.S. SenatorJames W. Wadsworth, Jr. 270,084Ella A. Boole 90,491George Henry Payne 46,039

Republican state senator (47th District) George F. Thompson lost the primary to Miller, but ran on the Prohibition ticket, as did Temperance activist Ella A. Boole.

Democratic primary +1920 Democratic primary results Office GovernorAlfred E. Smith 166,028(unopposed)Lieutenant GovernorGeorge R. Fitts 157,114(unopposed)Secretary of StateHarriet May Mills 154,339(unopposed)ComptrollerCharles W. Berry 155,432(unopposed)Attorney GeneralFrank H. Mott 154,763(unopposed)TreasurerJohn F. Healy 156,359(unopposed)State EngineerPaul McLoud 154,076(unopposed)Judge of the Court of AppealsAbram I. Elkus Judge of the Court of AppealsFrederick E. Crane (unopposed)U.S. SenatorHarry C. Walker 109,995George R. Lunn 44,226

All Prohibition and Socialist candidates were nominated unopposed in the primaries.

Result The whole Republican ticket was elected.

The incumbents Smith and Elkus were defeated. The incumbents Newton, Williams and Wadsworth were re-elected. Judges Chase and Crane moved from additional to regular seats on the Court of Appeals.

+ 1920 state election results Office Republican ticket Democratic ticket Socialist ticket Farmer-Labor ticket Prohibition ticket Socialist Labor ticketGovernorNathan L. Miller 1,335,878Alfred E. Smith 1,261,812Joseph D. Cannon 159,804Dudley Field Malone 69,908George F. Thompson 35,509John P. Quinn 5,015Lieutenant GovernorJeremiah Wood 1,497,964George R. Fitts 994,638Jessie W. Hughan 187,567Robert E. Haffey 44,485Edward G. Dietrich 30,901Jeremiah D. Crowley 7,550Secretary of StateJohn J. Lyons 1,614,426Harriet May Mills 862,933Charles W. Noonan 199,073William H. Auyer 32,293Irene B. Taylor 33,531May Phalor 6,236ComptrollerJames A. Wendell 1,524,527Charles W. Berry 935,643A. Philip Randolph 202,381Helen Hamlin Fincke 29,955William C. Gray 32,408John E. DeLee 6,354Attorney GeneralCharles D. Newton 1,573,943Frank H. Mott 881,070Darwin J. Meserole 199,529F. R. Serri 26,728William H. Burr 35,042John Donahue 8,915TreasurerN. Monroe Marshall 1,566,989John F. Healy 901,611Hattie F. Kreuger 200,836Joseph E. Cronk 28,227John McKee 30,095John A. Withers 5,784State EngineerFrank M. Williams 1,578,790Paul McLoud 869,428Vladimir Karapetoff 202,157Charles C. Crawford 12,999Arthur S. Light 29,578(none)Judge of the Court of AppealsEmory A. Chase 1,467,697Abram I. Elkus 833,725Leon A. Malkiel 218,299Swinburne Hale 26,372Coleridge A. Hart 36,487(none)Judge of the Court of AppealsFrederick E. Crane 1,963,978Frederick E. Crane 13,658Jacob Axelrod 187,640Thomas F. Dwyer 36,908Francis E. Baldwin 31,205(none)U.S. SenatorJames W. Wadsworth, Jr. 1,434,393Harry C. Walker 901,310Jacob Panken 208,155Rose Schneiderman 27,934Ella A. Boole 159,623Harry Carlson 7,822

See also New York gubernatorial elections New York state elections

Notes

Sources Primary candidates: "Primary Rivals Clash Tomorrow". The New York Times. September 13, 1920. p. 3. The tickets: "Nominees of All Parties for Public Office, for Election Tuesday, November 2". The New York Times. October 23, 1920. p. 14. Early returns: "Miller Lead, 64,014, 107 Dists. To Come". The New York Times. November 5, 1920. p. 2. Result: "Republican Lead up State 500,000". The New York Times. December 12, 1920. p. 1. Results in Manual for the Use of the State Legislature (1921; see pg. 766ff for Democratic primaries; pg. 769–774 for Republican primaries; pg. 775–798 for the general elections) Vote totals taken from The New York Red Book 1922