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Michael Thomas Yeller, (born August 25, 1941) commonly known as Mike Yeller, is a retired American politician who served as the Mayor of Sislington, New York, for 17 terms from 1975-1992, and additionally as the United States representative from New York's 19th congressional district from 2005-2011.

Mike Yeller
Official portrait, 2005.
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 's 19th district district
In office January 3, 2005 – January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Gerald Solomon
Succeeded by	Chris Gibson
12th Mayor of Sislington
In office October 19, 1975 – May 1, 1993
Preceded by	James A. Morkicker
Succeeded by	Ben Harper
Vice Mayor of Sislington
In office May 1, 1972 – October 19, 1975
Preceded by	Hubert Harold Moore
Succeeded by	Vacant (until Jesse Hardaway, on May 1, 1979)
Personal details
Born	August 25, 1941 Cortland County, New York
Spouse	Theresa Trayholdt Yeller
Children	2

Early life and pre-political career

Mike Yeller was born on August 25, 1941, in what was then Milantown, New York, in Cortland County. Born to Thomas Reddick Yeller and Mary Houston Yeller, he was the third son and was raised on a farm in remote Cortland County. Growing up, he went to Redmond School, a now defunct K-12 school in Sislington.

When he was 14, his parents went on a humanitarian mission with the church they belonged to, United First Methodist Church in Sislington. He went to live with his uncle in Syracuse, New York. His uncle, Markham Yeller, was a prominent banker and stock broker who spent the majority of his time on Wall Street in New York. Markham's wife, Mike's aunt, Maddie Cora Yeller, raised him until his parents returned from Haiti in 1958. By then, Mike had become a well-known student. He graduated as valedictorian from the elite preparatory school Marston Academy in Syracuse.

Mike was accepted into Columbia University and graduated with a Master of Political Science in the Class of 1964. He spent the remainder of the 1960's in New York City as an apprentice working at a stock trading firm, Heinenbrauser & Company. Mike became a whistleblower for the company, and in September of 1969, The New York Times broke a scathing insider trading report. The United States Securities and Exchanges Commission led an investigation and released a report in December of 1969 which charged Heinenbrauser & Company with insider trading. Yeller departed New York and returned to his family's farm in Cortland County, New York.

Vice Mayor of Sislington (1972-1975)

Mike returned to assist on the family farm in Cortland County and frequented trips to Sislington. In 1972, James A. Morkicker, a Sislington City Council member, entered the race for Mayor of Sislington in the 1972 election. Morkicker chose Mike as his running mate to be the Vice Mayor. The Sislington Serenade paraded Mike as a "hometown hero" and they both won easily on election night on April 19, 1972.

Sources close to James Morkicker later revealed after his death in 1975 that Morkicker, who was 80 at the time of his death, was in declining health and was diagnosed with lung cancer soon after his election. Mike had assisted Morkicker during his mayoral term and became acting mayor during Morkicker's numerous surgeries. In addition, the young and energetic Mike Yeller had campaigned for Morkicker during the two additional times he was re-elected in Sislington's 1 year term system: in 1973, 1974, and 1975. However, on October 19, 1975, James Morkicker died at the age of 80. Yeller assumed the role as mayor until the next mayoral election on April 19, 1976.

Mayor of Sislington (1975-1993)

After Morkicker's funeral on October 24, 1975, Mike chartered the construction of The James A. Morkicker Center, more commonly known as The Morkicker Center, a community center located in Sislington in memory of Morkicker. In addition, he chartered the creation of Morkicker Nature Preserve near to the center and established the Sislington Parks and Recreation Department to replace the original Sislington Office of Recreational Affairs. Morkicker Nature Preserve was the first nature preserve within Sislington city limits. Today, it has nearly quintupled in size and has miles of trails in thick forestry.

Mike ran unopposed in the 1976 mayoral election and won that election. However, he was criticized for the slow construction time of the James A. Morkicker Center--his administration had promised a partial completion date by November of 1976, which was pushed to April of 1978, and again to June of 1979. During the 1977, 1978, and 1979 Sislington mayoral elections, Mike Yeller ran virtually unopposed as his popularity grew. However, the Sislington City Council threatened to vote him out if he didn't nominate a vice mayor in his administration--previously there had been none. He nominated Jesse Hardaway. Hardaway remained his vice mayor until Mike stepped down from office in 1992, he ran unsuccessfully to become the next mayor in the 1993 Sislington mayoral election, losing to Ben Harper.

On June 14, 1979, Mike commenced the grand opening of The Morkicker Center with a motivational speech and the re-internment of the remains of James Morkicker in a marble sarcophagus in The Morkicker Center after exhuming him from his grave at Roe Cemetery just outside of Sislington.

Political commentators in the Sislington, New York, area had begun to refer to the Yeller administration and tenure as mayor as "the Yeller era", in 1980, Donald B. Hart, a Sislington City Council member, had entered the race as mayor of Sislington. Mike ran televised ads on WSTM-TV, a NBC Syracuse affiliate, to garner votes. Hart had chosen the controversial running mate Lee Trellsbury, a former Klu Klux Klan member. Today, political commentators say that the late 70's were when Mike was at his lowest during his tenure and Hart could've easily won had he picked a more popular running mate. Mike Yeller and Jesse Hardaway easily won by 7 percentage points in the 1980 Sislington mayoral election--Hart remained on the council until 1987 and vocally criticized Mike.

On July 7, 1980, Yeller signed the "Lake Gravesworth Act" which allowed for Cortland County to begin construction on a man-made reservoir in Sislington that aimed to draw in tourism for the city. Purchasing farmland, Cortland County began digging the lake on September 27, 1980 and would continue until soil temperatures froze. The lake took Carcass Creek as its primary tributary and took 3 and a half years to dig and another 6 months to fill with water. Mike had run PSA's during the 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, and 1985 mayoral elections to "not switch power" during "this crucial time", despite electing a different mayor making no difference in a Cortland County affair, regardless, he was able to win each election.

On May 15, 1984, Lake Gravesworth, which received its name from a fallen Vietnam war veteran from Sislington--Pvt. Richard Gravesworth , opened to the public with the establishment of a Marina on a peninsula. Tourism surged during the first summer to the lake, and the train station, which was just next to the lake, was, under order by Mike and in collaboration with Norfolk Southern, demolished and rebuilt at a cost of 1.3 million dollars to allow for tourism to flow through.

That September, Ronald Reagan, who was attempting to be re-elected as President, came to Sislington on his upstate New York campaign. He stopped briefly in the city and spoke at the Sislington City Council. He praised Yeller for "10 great years of Sislington leadership" and noted the construction of Lake Gravesworth and Morkicker Center.

That fall, Mike Yeller signed the "Lake Gravesworth Residency Act" after Cortland County had sold the remaining land around the lake to Sislington, it split much of the land around the lake up into plots for homes to be built. Many from New York City and its metropolitan area had purchased these plots to build summer vacation homes which was a steady stream of income for the city. The majority of the plots designated for sale were sold by 1987, however, 2/3 of the lakeshore was owned by the Milan family, who had originally settled the area, and an additional farmer who owned a peninsula, which was sold to build homes in 1994.

In 1986, Mike Yeller's approval rating had surged to 92%, which was his all-time high as mayor. However, he did not run opposed in the 1986 election, facing off again after Donald Hart, who, this time, had picked a different running mate, Teresa Bourden. However, his polling was weak as many still saw him as a "deranged racist" and did not win the election. In addition, Donald Hart, who was 63 at the time, stepped down from the council in 1987 after an impressive 19 year term on the council. He became very active in humanitarian efforts and repaired his reputation. He died in 2016, at the age of 92. This was the last time Mike Yeller ran unopposed.

After the 1986 election, Mike Yeller's popularity declined as 1986 marked his 11th year as the mayor. Sislington had mayors who served terms of similar lengths, however, during the latter half of his tenure, he had done not too much remarkable other than keeping Sislington with a strong economy.

His most bitter rival, John Boston, ran against him for the remainder of his term: in 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, and 1992. Boston had received decent polling but Mike Yeller beat him by an average of 4.3 percentage points.

After his success in the 1992 election, Mike Yeller announced he would not seek re-election as Mayor of Sislington in the 1993 election. He focused his last term to "wrap things up" for his successor to ensure a peaceful transition. He did, however, endorse his Vice Mayor, Jesse Hardaway, who ran in the 1993 election. However, voters wished for something fresh and Hardaway lost to Ben Harper, who succeeded Mike Yeller on May 1, 1993, after defeating Hardaway on April 19, 1993.

In his farewell address, he said "over the 20 years I have been the Vice Mayor and Mayor of Sislington, I have witnessed the expansion of Sislington to new heights. I watched a whole generation grow up, and paved the way for the 21st century in this city. I am proud to have been your faithful mayor." When he became the Vice Mayor under James Morkicker, Mike Yeller was 31 years old. By the time he stepped down, he was 52 years old. Political commentators stated "the end of an era...the Yeller era".

11 year retirement (1993-2004)

Mike Yeller purchased a 66 acre farm close to where he grew up in Cortland County where he resides to this day. He rarely re-entered the public eye but occasionally offered comment on Sislington politics and offered advice to mayors Ben Harper, (1993-2001) and Sylvan Corbin. (2001-2010)

In 1997, he wrote and published a memoir, "The Yeller Era", which spoke about his time during his mayorship and a brief chapter on his life before becoming the Mayor and Vice Mayor. Critically praised, it sold out in many upstate New York libraries.

United States House representative (2005-2011) and post political career

On March 16, 2004, Mike Yeller filed his candidacy to become a representative in the United States House of Representatives for the 19th district of New York, running as an independent. After winning the primaries, he beat Joshua Mortimer by 6.8 percentage points and was sworn in on January 3, 2005, into the 109th United States Congress. He voted with a Libertarian-leaning rhetoric with many moderate conservative and moderate liberal decisions. He voted for the Affordable Care Act.

He was re-elected again in 2006 and 2008 before announcing he would not seek re-election in the 2010 midterms. Since then, he has largely remained out of the public eye and has endorsed candidates for Sislington mayor. Occasionally, he will lecture a class or give remarks at an event. He has also attended numerous book-signings, and speaks about the importance of good leadership.

Personal life

Mike Yeller has been married to Theresa Trayholdt since 1973. During his Vice Mayorship, they resided in a 4,352 square foot home in the city limits of Sislington. His first child, Rodrick Trayholdt Yeller, was born December 17, 1974. His second child, Kimberly Reddick Yeller, was born May 7, 1976. During his tenure as Mayor of Sislington, he resided in the Mayor's Mansion and did not own any additional properties. His father, Thomas R. Yeller, died on June 29, 1983, and his mother, Mary H. Yeller, died on January 5, 1987. The Yeller Family Farm was inherited by Mike Yeller's older brother, Thomas Reddick Yeller, Jr., who died on March 7, 2021. Today, it is still owned by the Yeller Family, Thomas Reddick Yeller, III, resides there now.

His son, Rodrick, entered college in the very final days of his tenure, and his daughter, resided briefly at Mike's new residence in rural Cortland County before entering college in 1994. It is unknown which college the two children went to, as they are very private.