First elected as a Democrat to serve on the Bayonne City Council in 1909, Daly was elected as mayor of Bayonne in 1913 as a Republican, but lost a race for re-election in 1915. He won a second term as mayor in 1919, this time as a Democrat, and was re-elected in both 1923 and 1927. He was elected to his fifth term of office in 1943. In 1946, while serving his fifth and final term in office, Daly faced indictment on charges of official misconduct relating to claims that he had and the city's police chief had failed to deal with bookmaking and gambling in Bayonne, though the charges against him were later thrown out. In March 1947, Daly announced that he would be supporting a slate of candidates running for Bayonne city council in opposition to the official slate that was being supported by Hudson County Democratic Party boss
Frank Hague. Later that month, with the break with Hague complete, and having lost support from the party, Daly stepped down as mayor. ==References==