Joseph Zaretzki (March 9, 1900 – December 20, 1981) was an American lawyer and politician from

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 * ...

. He was

Majority Leader of the New York State Senate The majority leader of the New York State Senate is elected by the majority of the members of the New York State Senate. The position usually coincides with the title of temporary president of the State Senate, who presides over the session of t ...

in 1965, the only

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 (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

in this position since the adoption of the

New York State Constitution The Constitution of the State of New York establishes the structure of the government of the State of New York, and enumerates the basic rights of the citizens of New York. Like most state constitutions in the United States, New York's constituti ...

of 1938 until Malcolm Smith attained the position in 2009.

Early life, education, and military service

Zaretzki was born on March 9, 1900. He was born in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

and came to the United States in childhood.Glenn Fowler
Joseph Zaretzki, Former Albany Leader, Dies
''New York Times'' (December 21, 1981). He served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. He graduated from Columbia College and

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (CLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League university in New York City. The school was founded in 1858 as the Columbia College Law School. The un ...

Career

Zaretzki practiced law in

Upper Manhattan Upper Manhattan is the northern section of the New York City borough of Manhattan. Its southern boundary has been variously defined, but some of the most common usages are 96th Street, 110th Street (the northern boundary of Central Park), 1 ...

and entered politics toward the end of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

, and rose within

Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was an American political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789, as the Tammany Society. It became the main local ...

, becoming a district leader. In November 1947, he was elected to 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 ...

, to fill the vacancy caused by the appointment of Alexander A. Falk as Civil Service Commissioner. Zaretzki represented the Washington Heights area of

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 ...

from 1948 to 1974, sitting in the 166th, 167th, 168th, 169th, 170th, 171st, 172nd, 173rd, 174th, 175th, 176th, 177th, 178th, 179th and

180th New York State Legislature The 180th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 3, 1973, to May 30, 1974, during the fifteenth and final year of Nelson Rockefeller's governorship, and during Ma ...

s. He was the Democratic Minority Leader from 1957 to 1964, and from 1966 to 1974. As a state senator, Zaretzki could be both "fiery and humorous"; he once called for Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller to be

impeached Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eu ...

, but later admitted that "he had merely intended to capture the interest of spectators in the gallery." ''New York Times'' editorial board member William V. Shannon said, "To call Zaretzki a hack, would be undue praise."Jack Newfield, ''RFK: A Memoir'' (Thunder's Mouth Press: 1969), 2003 ed., pp. 146-47. Zaretzki was allied to Mayor

Robert F. Wagner Jr. Robert Ferdinand Wagner II (April 20, 1910 – February 12, 1991) was an American diplomat and politician who served three terms as the mayor of New York City from 1954 through 1965. When running for his third term, he broke with the Tammany Ha ...

and Tammany Hall leader J. Raymond Jones; he was opposed by the Reform Democrats and anti-Wagner Democrats, who sought to block Zaretzki from power in the state Senate. In 1965, the Democratic Party achieved for the only time since 1938 a majority in the State Senate, but the Democratic senators were divided in two factions, 15 senators allied with

Mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The Mayoralty in the United States, mayor's office administers all ...

, and 18 senators allied with

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 ...

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 ...

. After a month of deadlock, Zaretzki—the long-time Minority Leader—was elected Temporary President on February 3 with the votes of the Wagner men and the

Republicans 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 ...

who had voted for

Earl W. Brydges Earl William Brydges (May 25, 1905 – March 30, 1975) was an American lawyer and politician from New York (state), New York. He was Majority Leader of the New York State Senate, Temporary President and Majority Leader of the State Senate from 19 ...

, but were urged by Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller to end the deadlock. Zaretzki's political career ended in 1974, when Franz S. Leichter defeated him in the Democratic

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 ...

. Leichter, a state assemblyman, was from the Reform wing of the Democratic Party and was nearly three decades younger than Zaretzki.Linda Greenhouse
Zaretzki, Democratic Leader in State Since 1957, Is Defeated by Leichter
''New York Times'' (September 10, 1974). After his defeat, Zaretzki returned to the private practice of law.

Death

Zaretzki suffered a series of strokes toward the end of his life. He died on December 20, 1981, in Beth Abraham Hospital in

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 ...

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zaretzki, Joseph 1900 births 1981 deaths American politicians of Polish descent United States Army personnel of World War I Columbia College (New York) alumni Columbia Law School alumni Majority leaders of the New York State Senate Military personnel from New York City Democratic Party New York (state) state senators Polish emigrants to the United States Politicians from Manhattan 20th-century members of the New York State Legislature