and he was found eligible. Opting not to apply for an officer's commission or specialty training in a field such as civil affairs, he joined the United States Army as a private. During his absence, Frank Harris, a member of the city council, served as acting mayor. Corning underwent training as an Infantryman at Fort Dix, New Jersey, and Camp Blanding, Florida. Assigned to the 38th Infantry Regiment, a unit of the 2nd Infantry Division, he arrived in France with his unit in October, 1944. In France, Corning was initially attached to an organization that performed rebuilding duties in towns and villages that had been liberated from German occupation. During late 1944 and early 1945, he took part in the Battle of the Bulge and the Western Allied invasion of Germany and attained the rank of private first class. In the fall of 1945, Corning was discharged and returned to Albany. His awards included the Combat Infantryman Badge, Bronze Star Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with two battle stars, World War II Victory Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, and the Presidential Unit Citation, which was awarded to Corning's battalion. Post-World War II career At the New York state election, 1946, Corning ran for Lieutenant Governor of New York on the ticket with James M. Mead for governor, but they were defeated by the incumbent Republicans Dewey and Joe R. Hanley. Corning served ten full consecutive terms as mayor after his return from the war. His insurance firm profited from being the sole bidder on Albany County insurance contracts for many years. Corning defended this apparent conflict of interest by noting that he himself was not a county official. Corning was re-elected in landslides for most of his career. The most notable exception was 1973 when a prominent businessman and reform candidate, Carl Touhey, ran a well-financed Republican campaign and came within 3,500 votes of defeating him. In 1977, Corning faced a primary election challenge from State Senator Howard C. Nolan Jr., defeating him by a comfortable margin. Corning's last mayoral re-election came in 1981, when he defeated Charles Touhey (the son of 1973 mayoral candidate Carl Touhey) by a two-to-one margin. During his final term in office, his health deteriorated. He died in office in 1983. Personal life In 1932, Corning married Elizabeth Norris Platt (1912-1993). They were the parents of two children, Erastus Corning III and Bettina Corning Dudley.