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

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

from

Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

, who served in the

New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate is 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 232,225 (2020 figure ...

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

from 1978 to 1982, and ran as Republican 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–Bradenton–Sarasota, F ...

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 out ...

. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in 1950. Sheil went on to play for the Carbondale Aces of the American Basketball League. Sheil received a 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, NJCU consists of the School of Business, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Education, and College of Professional Studies a ...

) from 1967 to 1977. Sheil was president of

Hudson County Community College Hudson County Community College (HCCC) is a Public school (government funded), public community college in Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County, New Jersey. Locations The school's main campus is located in Jersey City, New Jersey, Jersey C ...

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

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, 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 th ...

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 politician, statesman, and academic administrator from the state of New Jersey. A Republican Party (United States), Republican, Kean served two terms as the 48th governor of New Jersey f ...

in the

1981 New Jersey gubernatorial election The 1981 New Jersey gubernatorial election was held November 3, 1981. Republican Speaker of the New Jersey General Assembly Thomas Kean narrowly defeated Democratic U.S. Representative James Florio, 49.46%–49.38%, following a recount. Kean ...

. 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. Background Merlino was born in 1922 in Trenton, New Jersey, the son of ...

for the removal. Sheil served as the

Hudson County Hudson County is a List of counties in New Jersey, county in the U.S. state of New Jersey, its smallest and most densely populated. Lying in the northeast of the state and on the west bank of the North River (Hudson River), Hudson River, the No ...

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 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 ...

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

Sarasota, Florida Sarasota () is a city in and the county seat of Sarasota County, Florida, United States. It is located in Southwest Florida, the southern end of the Tampa Bay area, and north of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, Florida, Punta Gord ...

, 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 Work ...

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 Party (United States), Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives, representing the 72nd District, which includes northern Sarasota County, Florida, Sarasota County, from 20 ...

, 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, 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 American Basketball League (1925–1955) players Scranton Miners (basketball) players Carbondale Aces players Wilkes-Barre Barons players 20th-century American academics 20th-century members of the New Jersey Legislature