 Van Wyck was the candidate of Tammany Hall, a political machine which played a role in New York politics that was similar to (and even more important than) that of the Brooklyn ring against which Schroeder had fought as mayor of Brooklyn.The exact reasons for Schroeder's unwillingness to seek another political office are not known.However, according to Schroeder's own statement, his refusal to accept the republican nomination for the post of governor was due to the pro-prohibition stance of components of the Republican Party in the state, which Schroeder felt was driving away German-American voters.