The Election of 1937 and Beyond

Abstract

The 1936 New York City charter reform introduced proportional representation (PR) as the voting method for electing the city council, the legislative body that replaced the old board of aldermen. Two local women politicians gained prominence in this period. One was Genevieve B. Earle, the first woman elected to that body in 1937. She served a total of twelve years on the council and, as minority leader, worked to modernize county government to make it more economical. The other was Anna M. Kross, a city magistrate who in 1938 ran for the state supreme court, a race she lost but which inspired other women attorneys to reach for higher political goals. The repeal of PR in 1947 limited New York City women’s political futures as city legislators.