Walter N. "Wally" Sheil (April 15, 1929 – June 23, 2002) was an American academic administrator and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

from

Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate was established as the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232, ...

as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

from 1978 to 1982, and ran as

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

candidate for

Sarasota County Sarasota County is a county located in Southwest Florida. At the 2020 US census, the population was 434,006. Its county seat is Sarasota and its largest city is North Port. Sarasota County is part of the North Port–Sarasota–Bradenton, FL m ...

Commission in 1996.

Education

Sheil attended Saint Peter's College in Jersey City, where he played basketball with

Thomas F. X. Smith Thomas Francis Xavier Smith (July 5, 1928 – May 31, 1996) was a reformist politician and author. He served as mayor of Jersey City, New Jersey, from 1977 to 1981. Career Smith was affectionately known as "The Mouth That Roared" due to his outsp ...

. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in 1950. Sheil went on to play for the

Carbondale Aces The Carbondale Aces were an American basketball team based in Carbondale, Pennsylvania, founded in the 1950–1951 season. The team began in the Allentown-Bethlehem area of Pennsylvania and moved to Carbondale in its inaugural campaign. It was a ...

of the American Basketball League. Sheil received an Master of Arts from Seton Hall University in 1952.

Career

Sheil worked as the director of admissions at Saint Peter's from 1957 to 1962 and director of continuing education at Jersey City State College (now

New Jersey City University New Jersey City University (NJCU) is a public university in Jersey City, New Jersey. Originally chartered in 1927, and known as Jersey City State College for 40 years of its history, New Jersey City University consists of the School of Business, ...

) from 1967 to 1977. Sheil was president of

Hudson County Community College Hudson County Community College (HCCC) is a public community college in Hudson County, New Jersey. Locations The school's main campus is located in Jersey City, with several institutions tapered throughout Journal Square and nearby Bergen Squar ...

from 1977 to 1981 and from 1987 to 1989. Sheil also served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

as personnel psychologist. While in the State Senate, Sheil was stripped of his assignments on the Judiciary Committee for supporting Republican

Thomas Kean Thomas Howard Kean ( ; born April 21, 1935) is an American businessman, academic administrator and politician. A member of the Republican Party, Kean served as the 48th governor of New Jersey from 1982 to 1990. Following his tenure as governor, ...

in the

1981 New Jersey gubernatorial election The 1981 New Jersey gubernatorial election was held on November 3. Republican Speaker of the Assembly Thomas Kean narrowly defeated Democratic U.S. Representative James Florio with 49.46% of the vote following a recount of the ballots. The diffe ...

. He filed a lawsuit against Senate President

Joseph P. Merlino Joseph P. Merlino (July 12, 1922 – October 7, 1998) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as President of the New Jersey Senate from 1978 to 1981. Early life and career Merlino was born in 1922 in Trenton, New Jersey, th ...

for the removal. Sheil served as the

Hudson County Hudson County is the most densely populated county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It lies west of the lower Hudson River, which was named for Henry Hudson, the sea captain who explored the area in 1609. Part of New Jersey's Gateway Region in ...

Democratic Party chairman from 1977 to 1981. Smith attempted to remove Sheil as chairman in 1980. A split among county democrats saw Sheil lose the 1981

primary election Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...

to Edward T. O'Connor Jr. Sheil retired to

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in Sarasota County on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is renowned for its cultural and environmental amenities, beaches, resorts, and the Sarasota School of Architecture. The city is located in the sout ...

, in 1991, where he changed his political affiliation to Republican. Sheil ran in the Republican

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

for a seat on the Sarasota County commission in 1996. He lost the primary to

Ray Pilon Ray Pilon (born January 11, 1945) is a former Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives, representing the 72nd District, which includes northern Sarasota County, from 2012 to 2016, and the 69th district from 2010 to 2012. Pilon u ...

, and later helped file an ethics complaint against Pilon for using a non-public mailing list to solicit campaign support. Pilon was the subject of a suggested fine of $100.00 by the

Florida Commission on Ethics The Florida Commission on Ethics, created in 1974 by the Florida Legislature, is tasked with investigating complaints alleging breaches of public trust by public officers and employees in Florida, other than judges. It is headquartered in Tallaha ...

Personal life

Sheil died on June 23, 2002, in

Cuddebackville, New York Cuddebackville is a hamlet in the town of Deerpark, located in Orange County, New York, United States. Taking US-209, Its location is about north of Port Jervis Port Jervis is a city located at the confluence of the Neversink and Delaware r ...

, and was interred at Holy Name Catholic Cemetery in Otisville.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheil, Wally New Jersey Democrats Florida Republicans 1929 births 2002 deaths Democratic Party New Jersey state senators Politicians from Jersey City, New Jersey People from Sarasota, Florida Heads of universities and colleges in the United States 20th-century American politicians American Basketball League (1925–1955) players Scranton Miners (basketball) players Carbondale Aces players Wilkes-Barre Barons players 20th-century American academics