Thomas Edmund Dewey (March 24, 1902 – March 16, 1971) was the Governor of New York (1943-1955) and the unsuccessful Republican candidate for the U.S. Presidency in 1944 and 1948. As a leader of the liberal faction of the Republican party he fought the conservative faction led by Senator Robert Taft. During the 1930s, Dewey made a name for himself as a fearless prosecutor, actively trying and convicting several key organized crime figures of New York City.