The 1970 New York state election was held on November 3, 1970, to elect the

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

, the

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

, the state comptroller, the

attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

and a

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

, as well as all members of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

and the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

Background

On June 6, 1968, U.S. Senator

Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – June 6, 1968), also known as RFK, was an American politician and lawyer. He served as the 64th United States attorney general from January 1961 to September 1964, and as a U.S. senator from New Yo ...

was

assassinated Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

. On September 10, Governor Rockefeller appointed Congressman Charles E. Goodell to serve for the remainder of Kennedy's term.

Nominations

Democratic primary

The Democratic State Committee met on April 1 and 2 at

Grossinger's Catskill Resort Hotel Grossinger's Catskill Resort Hotel was a resort in the Catskill Mountains in the Liberty (town), New York, Town of Liberty, near the village of Liberty (village), New York, Liberty, New York. It was a kosher establishment that catered primarily to ...

Liberty, New York Liberty is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Sullivan County, New York, Sullivan County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 10,159 at the 2020 census.US Census Bureau, 2020 Census Report QuickFacts, ...

, and designated Arthur J. Goldberg for governor; Basil Paterson for lieutenant governor; the incumbent Arthur Levitt for comptroller; Adam Walinsky for attorney general; and Ted Sorensen for the U.S. Senate. The

primary election Primary elections or primaries are elections held to determine which candidates will run in an upcoming general election. In a partisan primary, a political party selects a candidate. Depending on the state and/or party, there may be an "open pr ...

was held on June 23. Paterson received the most votes.

Other parties with ballot line

The Liberal State Committee met on April 4, and designated Party Chairman Rev. Donald S. Harrington for Governor; and Deputy Mayor of New York Timothy W. Costello for the U.S. Senate. They also endorsed the Democratic designees Paterson and Levitt, and the Republican designee Lefkowitz. Harrington and Costello withdrew on May 7, and on May 11 the State Committee endorsed Democrat Arthur J. Goldberg for Governor; and the incumbent Republican U.S. senator Charles E. Goodell. The Republican State Committee met on April 7 at

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

, and designated the incumbents Rockefeller, Wilson, Lefkowitz and Goodell (the first three for re-election); and completed the ticket with Edward Regan for Comptroller. The

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

State Committee met on April 7, and designated again Prof. Paul L. Adams for governor, and James L. Buckley for the U.S. Senate. Adams had polled more than half a million votes in 1966, and Buckley more than a million in 1968. They also designated Edward F. Leonard for lieutenant governor; Anthony R. Spinelli for Comptroller; and Leo Kesselring, lawyer, of Rochester, for attorney general. The Republican, Liberal and Conservative tickets designated by the state committees were not challenged in the primaries.

Minor parties

Eight parties filed petitions to nominate candidates. The Socialist Workers Party nominated Clifton DeBerry for Governor; Jonathan Rothschild, a "30 years old

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

taxi driver," for lieutenant governor; Ms. Ruthann Miller (born c. 1940), for Comptroller; Miguel Padilla, Jr., 30, for Attorney General; and Ms. Kipp Dawson (born 1941) for the U.S. Senate. The Communist Party nominated Clifton DeBerry for Governor; Mrs. Grace Mora Newman (born c. 1927), of

The Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

, for lieutenant governor; and Arnold Johnson for the U.S. Senate. The "Civil Service Independents Party" nominated Gov. Rockefeller and Lt. Gov. Wilson for re-election. The "Independent Alliance Party" nominated James L. Buckley for the U.S. Senate. The "Courage Party," the New York state branch of the American Party, was ruled off the ballot on September 11 by Secretary of State John P. Lomenzo. The "Conservation Party" nominated Richard L Ottinger for the U.S. Senate, but was ruled off the ballot by the Appellate Division on October 1, reversing an earlier

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...

decision. At the same time, the "Independent Alliance" which nominated James L. Buckley, was upheld. The appellate decision was upheld by the

New York Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the supreme court, highest court in the Judiciary of New York (state), Unified Court System of the New York (state), State of New York. It consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeal ...

on October 7.''TOP STATE COURT UPHOLDS BADILLO; ...Conservation Party Ruled Off Ballot''
in NYT on October 8, 1970 (subscription required)

Result

At the height of the chaotic political situation during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

, a Republican governor and lieutenant governor, a Democratic/Liberal comptroller, a Republican/Liberal attorney general and a Conservative U.S. Senator were elected. The incumbents Rockefeller, Wilson, Levitt and Lefkowitz were re-elected. The incumbent Goodell was defeated. Obs.: *The vote for governor is used to define

ballot access Ballot access is rules and procedures regulating the right to candidacy, the conditions under which a candidate, political party, or ballot measure is entitled to appear on voters' ballots in elections in the United States. The jurisprudence o ...

, for automatic access are necessary 50,000 votes. *The number for Rockefeller/Wilson includes 46,212 votes polled on the Civil Service Independent ticket. *Buckley polled 2,179,640 votes on the Conservative ticket and 108,550 on the Independent Alliance ticket.

Notes

Sources

*Official result of Democratic primary
''GOLDBERG'S VICTORY WAS BY 41,592 VOTES''
in NYT on July 12, 1970 (subscription required) *Official result

in NYT on December 16, 1970 (subscription required) New York Red Book 1971 {{New York elections

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...