McKee was born on August 8, 1889. He married Cornelia Kraft on November 27, 1918. He was a member of the
New York State Assembly (Bronx Co., 7th D.) in
1918,
1919,
1920,
1921,
1922 and
1923. McKee was a municipal judge from 1924 to 1926. In 1926, he was elected president of the
New York City Board of Aldermen on the ticket with
James J. Walker for mayor. McKee became acting
mayor of New York City after the resignation of Mayor Walker on September 1, 1932. Walker, who resigned amid scandal and the threat of a criminal indictment, subsequently fled to
Europe until the danger of prosecution appeared remote. McKee, who was sometimes mockingly referred to as "Holy Joe", running as a write-in candidate, lost a special election to
John P. O'Brien in November 1932 to fill out the rest of Walker's unexpired term as mayor. His four-month term as acting mayor of New York City ended on December 31, 1932. In November 1933, McKee
ran for mayor as the
Recovery Party candidate against Democratic Mayor
John P. O'Brien and
Republican-City Fusion Party candidate
Fiorello La Guardia, but lost to La Guardia. He served as a delegate to the
Democratic National Convention in 1932, 1936, 1940, and 1944. McKee died in 1956, following a heart attack. He was buried at the
Gate of Heaven Cemetery in
Hawthorne, New York. ==See also==