Ives was born in Bainbridge, New York. He served overseas in the United States Army during World War I, rising to the rank of first lieutenant before he left the army in 1919. He then attended Hamilton College and entered the banking and insurance businesses. It was in 1930 that he entered politics, being elected to the New York State Assembly. He served in the Assembly from 1931 to 1946, serving as minority leader in 1935, speaker in 1936, and majority leader from 1937 to 1946. In 1946, he was elected to the United States Senate from New York, serving from 1947 to 1959. He was reelected in 1952, and did not run for reelection in 1958. In 1954 he ran for governor of New York, but was defeated by Democrat Averell Harriman. Ives died in Norwich, New York. In New York state politics and in national Republican politics, he was known as a moderate member of his party and as a strong supporter of Thomas Dewey.