Bill Green (New York politician) explained

Image Name:S. William Green.jpg
State:New York
Constituency: (1978–1983)
(1983–1993)
Term Start:February 14, 1978
Term End:January 3, 1993
Predecessor:Ed Koch
Successor:Carolyn Maloney (redistricting)
State Assembly2:New York
District2:66th
Term Start2:January 1, 1967
Term End2:December 31, 1968
Predecessor2:Louis DeSalvio
Successor2:Stephen C. Hansen
State Assembly3:New York
District3:72nd
Term Start3:January 1, 1966
Term End3:December 31, 1966
Predecessor3:new district
Successor3:Charles Rangel
State Assembly4:New York
District4:New York County 9th
Term Start4:January 1, 1965
Term End4:December 31, 1965
Predecessor4:John R. Brook
Successor4:district abolished
Party:Republican
Birth Name:Sedgwick William Green
Birth Date:16 October 1929
Birth Place:New York City, U.S.
Death Place:New York City, U.S.
Spouse:Patricia Freiburg
Children:2
Occupation:Attorney
Alma Mater:Harvard University (BA, JD)

Sedgwick William Green (October 16, 1929 – October 14, 2002) was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from New York. He represented a district covering most or all of Manhattan's East Side. To date, he is the last Republican to have represented Manhattan in the U.S. House.

Life and career

Bill Green was born on October 16, 1929, in New York City, the son of Louis A. Green and Evelyn (née Schoenberg) Green.[1] His father was a wealthy investor who was one of the main shareholders in Grand Union, and Bill Green grew up in Manhattan.[2] He graduated from The Horace Mann School in 1946, Harvard University in 1950, and Harvard Law School in 1953. From 1953 to 1955, he served in the United States Army. After leaving the army, he was legal secretary for U.S. Court of Appeals (D.C.) Judge George T. Washington before leaving to practice law.From 1961-64, Green was the chief counsel to the New York Joint Legislative Committee on Housing and Urban Development. He was a member of the New York State Assembly from 1965 to 1968, sitting in the 175th, 176th and 177th New York State Legislatures. In 1968 he ran for Congress, but lost the Republican nomination to Whitney North Seymour Jr., who went on to be defeated by Democrat Ed Koch.,[3] Afterwards he was the New York City director of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Green was elected as a Republican to the 95th United States Congress, to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Ed Koch, and was re-elected to the 96th, 97th, 98th, 99th, 100th, 101st and 102nd United States Congresses, holding office from February 14, 1978, to January 3, 1993. A mostly liberal Republican, he was one of the few members of his party to have a long run in office from a city long dominated by Democrats.

However, the East Side-based district, long considered a bastion of moderate Republicans, had been trending Democratic at the national level for some time. Redistricting in 1992 made his district friendlier to Democrats, as it gained some heavily Democratic portions of Queens and Brooklyn. As a result, he narrowly lost his re-election bid that year to New York City Councilwoman Carolyn Maloney.[4] Green sought the Republican nomination for Governor of New York in 1994, but was defeated by State Senator George Pataki.[5]

, Green is the last Republican to represent any part of Manhattan in Congress. The Republicans have only made one substantive bid for the seat–renumbered as the 12th in 2013–since Green left office, and have never cracked the 40 percent barrier in the district.

Personal life and death

Green and his wife, the former Patricia Freiburg, had two children. He died from liver cancer at a hospital in Manhattan on October 14, 2002, two days before his 73rd birthday.[6]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Book: Who's who in Government. November 1977. 9780837912035.
  2. Kurt F. Stone, The Jews of Capitol Hill: A Compendium of Jewish Congressional Members, 2010, p. 332
  3. News: Bill Green, Former Congressman, Dies at 72. The New York Times. 16 October 2002. Martin. Douglas.
  4. News: Lyall . Sarah . 1992-11-10 . In Redrawn District, What Went Wrong for Green in Election . The New York Times . New York City, NY . 2016-03-28.
  5. News: Sack . Kevin . 1994-05-24 . G.O.P. Backs a Legislator to Oppose Cuomo . The New York Times . New York City, NY . 2016-03-28.
  6. News: Martin . Douglas . 2002-10-16 . Bill Green, Former Congressman, Dies at 72 . The New York Times . https://web.archive.org/web/20150527211740/http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/16/nyregion/bill-green-former-congressman-dies-at-72.html. May 27, 2015 . June 9, 2020. live.