1901 New York City mayoral election

An election for Mayor of New York City was held in November 1901.

1901 New York City mayoral election

← 1897 November 1901 1903 →

Nominee Seth Low Edward M. Shepard Party Republican Democratic Alliance Fusion Popular vote 296,813 265,177 Percentage 51.2% 45.8%

Borough results Low:      40–50%      50–60% Shepard:      40–50%

Mayor before election Robert A. Van Wyck Democratic Elected mayor Seth Low Republican

Incumbent mayor Robert A. Van Wyck was not a candidate for re-election to a second term in office. Republicans would not win a mayoral election in New York City again until 1933.

Background

In the 1897 mayoral election, held in connection with the consolidation of the five boroughs of Greater New York, Robert Anderson Van Wyck was elected to a four-year term in office with the support of Tammany Hall. Van Wyck was initially quite popular as the result of his reversal of various reversals of reforms instituted by his reformist predecessor, William Lafayette Strong.

The Van Wyck administration was brought down in 1900 following a proposed doubling in the price of ice by the American Ice Company from 30 cents per hundred pounds to 60 cents. Before the invention of commercial refrigeration, ice was the only preservative available for food, milk, and necessary medicines; therefore, the proposed increase had potentially fatal implications.

In response to public outcry, a public investigation revealed that American Ice had secured a monopoly over the product through Tammany Hall maneuvering and that Van Wyck had been gifted over $680,000 ($20,478,719 in 2023) in company stock. The scandal destroyed Van Wyck's reputation and dramatically worsened the public standing of Tammany Hall, although a state investigation initiated by Governor Theodore Roosevelt later absolved Van Wyck of personal wrongdoing.

General election

Candidates

• Ben Hanford, printer (Social Democratic)
• Benjamin F. Keinard (Socialist Labor)
• Seth Low, president of Columbia University, former mayor of Brooklyn, and Citizens' Union nominee for mayor in 1897 (Republican-Fusion)
• Edward M. Shepard, attorney and political reformer (Democratic)
• Alfred L. Manierre (Prohibition)

Results by borough

1901 New York City mayoral election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Seth Low	296,813	51.2%
	Democratic	Edward M. Shepard	265,177	45.8%
	Social Democratic	Ben Hanford	9,834	1.7%
	Socialist Labor	Benjamin F. Keinard	6,213	1.1%
	Prohibition	Alfred L. Manierre	1,264	0.2%
Total votes			579,301	100.00%
	Republican gain from Democratic

Results by borough

1901	Party	The Bronx and Manhattan	Brooklyn	Queens	Richmond [Staten Is.]	Total	%
Seth Low	Fusion	162,298	114,625	13,118	6,772	296,813	51.2%
		49.1%	55.0%	47.4%	51.9%
Edward M. Shepard	Democratic	156,631	88,858	13,679	6,009	265,177	45.8%
		47.4%	42.7%	49.4%	46.1%
Benjamin Hanford	Social Democratic	6,409	2,692	613	120	9,834	1.7%
Benjamin F. Keinard	Socialist Labor	4,323	1,638	181	71	6,213	1.1%
Alfred L. Manierre	Prohibition	617	501	74	72	1,264	0.2%
TOTAL		330,278	208,314	27,665	13,044	579,301