Albany Regency, popular name for a group of Democratic Party politicians whose activities were centered in Albany, New York, and who took a leading part in national and New York State politics between 1820 and 1850. The Regency was one of the earliest effective political machines in the U.S. Most of its members simultaneously held public offices and party positions, using both to bolster their own private fortunes and those of their party. Among its prominent members were Martin Van Buren, who rose from state office to the U.S. presidency, and William Marcy, who became governor of New York State and a cabinet member under Presidents James Knox Polk and Franklin Pierce. A split in the New York Democratic Party after 1844 weakened the Regency, and eventually it was dissolved.