His death raised the question of whether the revised
State Constitution, adopted in 1938, required a special election to fill the vacancy. The
New York Court of Appeals decided in the affirmative, meeting with harsh criticism from Governor Dewey. An amendment to the State Constitution in
1937 had increased the
New York State Assemblymen's term to two years and the
State Senators had already been elected to two-year terms in even-numbered years since
1898, so that now in odd-numbered years there were usually only local offices to be filled at the general election in November. Despite Dewey's objections, a statewide special election was held in
November 1943. On recommendation of Governor Dewey, the Legislature passed, and the voters approved, a constitutional amendment which prohibited any elections for lieutenant governor in any event except at the time of the election of a governor. ==References==