for a seat in the United States Senate. 1986 gubernatorial campaign In May 1986, Dillon was nominated for Governor of New York by the New York State Right to Life Party on a ticket with Thomas Droleskey, an assistant professor at St. Francis College, for Lieutenant Governor, and Mary Jane Tobin, the party's founder, for Comptroller. The party cross-endorsed the better known Republicans Peter King and Alfonse D'Amato in the races for Attorney General and Senate. Dillon accepted the nomination the third time it was offered to him by the party's leadership, and only after it had been declined by Republican nominee Andrew O'Rourke, who had eschewed the party throughout his career, considering it detriment despite sharing many of its ideals. Dillon's candidacy was considered a boon for the party, which had struggled to reach the 50,000 votes required to maintain official party status in the 1982 gubernatorial election, slipping from the fourth to the fifth ballot line. During the campaign, Dillon described himself as a "progressive Democrat" except for his staunch opposition to abortion and gay rights. Dillon also said that while he remained generally opposed to the death penalty, he would sign a bill reinstating the death penalty since the legislature had so far failed to pass legislation establishing a sentence of life without parole. Dillon's campaign further deteriorated his relationship with Democratic leadership, which had objected to him running, with Nassau County Democratic Chair Martin Mellman saying in June that Dillon had effectively abandoned the party. In September, Dillon openly acknowledged his vulnerability in future Democratic primaries and mused that he could eventually defect to the Republican party. Dillon ultimately received 130,802 votes (3.05%), which returned the Right to Life Party to fourth place on the New York ballot and maintained its official party status for four years. Death On August 15, 2010, Dillon, a devoted Catholic, died at his home in Rockville Centre after a long battle with lymphoma. He was 76 years old. References 1933 births 2010 deaths Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Nassau County District Attorneys Deaths from lymphoma Fordham University School of Law alumni Politicians from Nassau County, New York New York (state) Democrats New York (state) Republicans New York State Right to Life Party politicians People from Rockville Centre, New York Politicians from the Bronx Catholics from New York (state)