Joseph V. McKee

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Joseph Vincent McKee, Sr. (August 8, 1889 – January 28, 1956) was a teacher at DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx, New York, who later became a politically active Democrat and briefly served as the acting mayor of New York City.[1][2]

Joseph V. McKee
McKee in 1932
Acting Mayor of New York City
In office
September 1, 1932 – December 31, 1932
Preceded byJames J. Walker
Succeeded byJohn P. O'Brien
Member of the New York State Assembly
from the 1st Bronx district
In office
January 1, 1918 – December 31, 1923
Succeeded byJohn F. Reidy
Personal details
Born
Joseph Vincent McKee

August 8, 1889
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedJanuary 28, 1956 (aged 66)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseCornelia Kraft
ChildrenJoseph V. McKee, Jr. Richard P. McKee

Life and career

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McKee was born on August 8, 1889. He married Cornelia Kraft on November 27, 1918.[1][3] He was a member of the New York State Assembly (Bronx Co., 7th D.) in 1918, 1919, 1920, 1921, 1922 and 1923.

 
The gravesite of Mayor Joseph V. McKee in Gate of Heaven Cemetery

McKee was a municipal judge from 1924 to 1926. In 1926, he was elected president of the New York City Board of Aldermen on the ticket with James J. Walker for mayor.[4]

McKee became acting mayor of New York City after the resignation of Mayor Walker on September 1, 1932. Walker, who resigned amid scandal and the threat of a criminal indictment, subsequently fled to Europe until the danger of prosecution appeared remote. McKee, who was sometimes mockingly referred to as "Holy Joe", running as a write-in candidate, lost a special election to John P. O'Brien in November 1932 to fill out the rest of Walker's unexpired term as mayor. His four-month term as acting mayor of New York City ended on December 31, 1932.

In November 1933, McKee ran for mayor as the Recovery Party candidate against Democratic Mayor John P. O'Brien and Republican-City Fusion Party candidate Fiorello La Guardia, but lost to La Guardia. He served as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1932, 1936, 1940, and 1944.

McKee died in 1956, following a heart attack. He was buried at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Hawthorne, New York.[1][5]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Joseph V. McKee is Dead". The New York Times. January 29, 1956. Retrieved 2007-06-14.
  2. ^ "The Green Book: Mayors of the City of New York" Archived 2012-05-14 at the Wayback Machine on the official NYC website
  3. ^ "Assemblyman McKee Marries". The New York Times. November 28, 1918. p. 24. Retrieved December 28, 2016.
  4. ^ "Joseph V. McKee". The New York Times. January 1, 1933.
  5. ^ Gate of Heaven Cemetery is also the final resting place of his mayoral predecessor, Walker, and successor, O'Brien.
New York State Assembly
Preceded by
?
New York State Assembly, Bronx County 7th District
1918–1923
Succeeded by
John F. Reidy
Political offices
Preceded by Mayor of New York City (acting)
1932
Succeeded by