Members 50 Party control Republican (36-14) | Temporary President John Raines (R) | |
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Jurisdiction New York, United States Term January 1 – December 31, 1906 President Lt. Gov. M. Linn Bruce (R) | ||
The 129th New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 3 to May 3, 1906, during the second year of Frank W. Higgins's governorship, in Albany.
Contents
Background
Under the provisions of the New York Constitution of 1894, 50 Senators and 150 assemblymen were elected in single-seat districts; senators for a two-year term, assemblymen for a one-year term. The senatorial districts were made up of entire counties, except New York County (twelve districts), Kings County (seven districts), Erie County (three districts) and Monroe County (two districts). The Assembly districts were made up of contiguous area, all within the same county, .
At this time there were two major political parties: the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. In New York City, the Municipal Ownership League also nominated candidates.
Elections
The New York state election, 1905, was held on November 7. No statewide elective offices were up for election this time. Special elections were held to fill the vacancies in the 16th and 24th senatorial districts.
Sessions
The Legislature met for the regular session at the State Capitol in Albany on January 3, 1906; and adjourned on May 3.
James Wolcott Wadsworth, Jr. (R) was elected Speaker with 106 votes against 34 for George M. Palmer (D) and 6 for Thomas F. Long (M.O.L.).
On April 27, the Legislature re-apportioned the Senate districts, increasing the number to 51. The apportionment was then contested in the courts.
The Legislature also re-apportioned the number of assemblymen per county. Nassau County was separated from the remainder of Queens County; Albany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oswego and Rensselaer counties lost one seat each; Erie, Monroe and Westchester gained one each; and Kings and Queens counties gained two each.
On August 13, the new Senate apportionment was upheld by Supreme Court Justice Howard.
On April 3, 1907, the new Senate and Assembly apportionment was declared unconstitutional by the New York Court of Appeals.
Districts
Note: In 1897, New York County (the boroughs of Manhattan and Bronx), Kings County (the borough of Brooklyn), Richmond County (the borough of Staten Island) and the Western part of Queens County (the borough of Queens) were consolidated into the present-day City of New York. The Eastern part of Queens County (the non-consolidated part) was separated in 1899 as Nassau County. Parts of the 1st and 2nd Assembly districts of Westchester County were annexed by New York City in 1895, and became part of the Borough of the Bronx in 1898.
Members
The asterisk (*) denotes members of the previous Legislature who continued in office as members of this Legislature.