In 1938, Poletti was elected lieutenant governor of New York on the Democratic ticket with Lehman.

In 1939 Poletti was elected to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's board of directors.
In 1940 he threw out the first pitch at a game between the New York Cubans and the New York Black Yankees, opening the season of the Negro National League with a speech advocating the integration of Major League Baseball.

Poletti, state Attorney General John J. Bennett Jr. and U.S. Senator James M. Mead were candidates for the Democratic nomination for governor in 1942.
When party leaders coalesced around Bennett, Poletti withdrew and accepted renomination for lieutenant governor.
Bennett defeated Mead for the gubernatorial nomination.
The ticket of Bennett and Poletti were defeated in the general election by Thomas E. Dewey and Thomas W. Wallace.

When Lehman resigned as governor on December 3, 1942, to accept appointment as Director of Foreign Relief and Rehabilitation Operations for the United States Department of State, Poletti succeeded to the governorship.
He served 29 days, the shortest term of any New York governor.

After leaving office Poletti was appointed special assistant to Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson.
In this position he worked to racially integrate the military.
In 1938, Poletti was elected lieutenant governor of New York on the Democratic ticket with Lehman.
In 1939 Poletti was elected to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's board of directors. In 1940 he threw out the first pitch at a game between the New York Cubans and the New York Black Yankees, opening the season of the Negro National League with a speech advocating the integration of Major League Baseball.
Poletti, state Attorney General John J. Bennett Jr. and U.S. Senator James M. Mead were candidates for the Democratic nomination for governor in 1942. When party leaders coalesced around Bennett, Poletti withdrew and accepted renomination for lieutenant governor. Bennett defeated Mead for the gubernatorial nomination. The ticket of Bennett and Poletti were defeated in the general election by Thomas E. Dewey and Thomas W. Wallace.
When Lehman resigned as governor on December 3, 1942, to accept appointment as Director of Foreign Relief and Rehabilitation Operations for the United States Department of State, Poletti succeeded to the governorship. He served 29 days, the shortest term of any New York governor.
After leaving office Poletti was appointed special assistant to Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson. In this position he worked to racially integrate the military.
Charles Poletti