Mayoral election in Buffalo, New York, 2025 (June 24 Democratic primary)
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| 2025 Buffalo elections |
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| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: April 3, 2025, April 10, 2025, & May 27, 2025 |
| Primary election: June 24, 2025 General election: November 4, 2025 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: Mayor |
| Total seats up: 1 |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2025 |
Sean Ryan defeated acting Mayor Christopher P. Scanlon and three other candidates in the Democratic primary for mayor of Buffalo on June 24, 2025. Click here for detailed results. In the lead-up to the primary election, Scanlon and Ryan led in fundraising and media attention.
City & State's Austin C. Jefferson wrote, "Whoever wins the race and the following general election will be on the front lines of an ongoing trade dispute with Canada and will need to grapple with a city budget shortfall in the tens of millions."[1]
According to Buffalo Toronto Public Media's Jamal Harris Jr., both candidates had different advantages heading into the primary election: "Senator Sean Ryan has a strong presence in the Delaware district and North Buffalo. […] Acting Mayor Chris Scanlon is of course, the acting mayor which essentially comes with free press anytime he wants it, along with strong support in Buffalo's South district."[2]
Scanlon served on the Buffalo Common Council from 2011 to 2024 and as council president from January to October 2024. Due to being council president, Scanlon became acting mayor in October 2024 after then-Mayor Byron Brown (D) resigned. His prior professional experience included working as a business manager.[3]
Scanlon said he would "focus on ensuring all residents have access to safe, healthy, high quality, affordable housing, making sure our community is safer and reducing crime in all of our neighborhoods, creating new, good paying jobs and career opportunities while allowing our businesses to flourish."[4]
Ryan was elected to the New York Senate in 2020. During his first term in the Senate, Ryan represented District 60 but began representing District 61 in subsequent terms due to redistricting. Ryan previously served in the New York Assembly from 2011 to 2021. His prior professional experience included working as an attorney.[5]
Ryan said he would "address our everyday problems, and tackle the big tough challenges that we have dealt with for too long—fiscal mismanagement, crumbling infrastructure, entrenched poverty, and a housing crisis that's holding us back."[6]
Local unions endorsed both candidates.[2] In addition to local unions, Carl P. Paladino (R) endorsed Scanlon.[7] The Erie County Democratic Committee and Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz (D) endorsed Ryan.[8][9]
While Ryan and Scanlon ran in the Democratic primary, they also qualified to run on other party lines for the general election — Scanlon also ran as an independent, and Ryan ran on the Working Families Party line. However, Ryan said he would not remain in the race if he lost the Democratic nomination.[10]
The ability for candidates to run on multiple party lines played a role in the 2021 general election for mayor of Buffalo. In that year's Democratic primary, India Walton (D) defeated incumbent Brown, who served as mayor from 2005 to 2024, 51% to 46%. Following his primary defeat, Brown announced he would run in the general election as a write-in candidate. Brown defeated Walton 60% to 40% in the general election.
Anthony Tyson-Thompson (D), Garnell Whitfield (D), and Rasheed N.C. Wyatt (D) also ran.
As of 2025, Buffalo did not have term limits for the position of mayor. Mayors served a four-year term.
The last Republican mayor of Buffalo, Chester A. Kowal, left office in 1965.[11]
This page focuses on the Democratic primary for mayor of Buffalo. For more in-depth information on the general election, see the following page:
Elections
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Candidates and results
General election
General election for Mayor of Buffalo
Sean Ryan defeated James Gardner and Michael Gainer in the general election for Mayor of Buffalo on November 4, 2025.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Sean Ryan (D / Working Families Party) | 71.8 | 30,497 |
| James Gardner (R) | 22.7 | 9,654 | ||
| Michael Gainer (Independent) | 4.6 | 1,966 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.9 | 371 | ||
| Total votes: 42,488 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Garnell Whitfield (Independent)
- Christopher Scanlon (Independent)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Mayor of Buffalo
Sean Ryan defeated incumbent Christopher Scanlon, Garnell Whitfield, Rasheed Wyatt, and Anthony Tyson-Thompson in the Democratic primary for Mayor of Buffalo on June 24, 2025.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Sean Ryan | 46.4 | 12,439 |
 | Christopher Scanlon | 35.1 | 9,430 | |
| Garnell Whitfield | 8.2 | 2,204 | ||
 | Rasheed Wyatt | 7.7 | 2,066 | |
| Anthony Tyson-Thompson | 2.4 | 642 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 51 | ||
| Total votes: 26,832 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- James A. W. McLeod (D)
- Michael Gainer (D)
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. James Gardner advanced from the Republican primary for Mayor of Buffalo.
Working Families Party primary election
The Working Families Party primary election was canceled. Sean Ryan advanced from the Working Families Party primary for Mayor of Buffalo.
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: New York elections, 2025
June 24, 2025
November 4, 2025
Candidate comparison
Candidate profiles
This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.
Party: Democratic Party, Working Families Party
Incumbent: No
Political Office:
- New York State Senate (Assumed office: 2021)
- New York State Assembly (2011-2021)
Biography: Ryan received a bachelor’s degree from the State University of New York at Fredonia and a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School. His career experience included working as an attorney.
Show sources
Sources: Sean Ryan Campaign Website, "FIXING THE DAMN ROADS," accessed May 20, 2025; Sean Ryan Campaign Website, "CREATING A SAFER BUFFALO," accessed May 20, 2025; Sean Ryan Campaign Website, "GETTING OUR FISCAL HOUSE IN ORDER," accessed May 20, 2025; Sean Ryan Campaign Website, "Meet Sean," accessed May 29, 2025
This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mayor of Buffalo in 2025.
Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses
Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
No candidate in this race completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign advertisements
This section includes a selection of up to three campaign advertisements per candidate released in this race, as well as links to candidates' YouTube, Vimeo, and/or Facebook video pages. If you are aware of other links that should be included, please email us.
Christopher Scanlon
View more ads here:
Sean Ryan
| May 22, 2025 |
| May 8, 2025 |
| January 23, 2025 |
View more ads here:
Endorsements
Click the links below to see official endorsement lists published on candidate campaign websites for any candidates that make that information available. If you are aware of a website that should be included, please email us.
Election competitiveness
Polls
- See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls
We provide results for polls from a wide variety of sources, including media outlets, social media, campaigns, and aggregation websites, when available. No polls were available for this election. To notify us of polls published in this election, please email us.
Election spending
Campaign finance
Candidates in this election submitted campaign finance reports to the New York State Board of Elections. Click here to see those reports.
Satellite spending
- See also: Satellite spending
Satellite spending describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.[12][13][14]
If available, this section includes links to online resources tracking satellite spending in this election. To notify us of a resource to add, email us.
Election context
Ballot access requirements
Information on ballot access requirements for candidates can be found here.
Buffalo, New York, mayoral election history
2021
General election
General election for Mayor of Buffalo
The following candidates ran in the general election for Mayor of Buffalo on November 2, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Byron Brown (D) (Write-in) | 58.2 | 38,108 |
 | India Walton (D) | 39.4 | 25,806 | |
| Benjamin Carlisle (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.3 | 219 | ||
| Sean Miles (R) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 23 | ||
| William O’Dell (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 8 | ||
| Taniqua Simmons (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 0 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 2.0 | 1,309 | ||
| Total votes: 65,473 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Mayor of Buffalo
India Walton defeated incumbent Byron Brown and Le'Candice Durham in the Democratic primary for Mayor of Buffalo on June 22, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | India Walton | 50.5 | 11,718 |
| Byron Brown | 46.0 | 10,669 | |
 | Le'Candice Durham | 3.1 | 729 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 70 | ||
| Total votes: 23,186 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Scott Wilson (D)
Republican primary election
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Ross M. Kostecky (R)
Working Families Party primary election
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Byron Brown (Working Families Party)
- India Walton (Working Families Party)
2017
General election
General election for Mayor of Buffalo
Incumbent Byron Brown won election in the general election for Mayor of Buffalo on November 7, 2017.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | | Byron Brown (D) |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Mayoral partisanship
Buffalo has a Democratic mayor. As of April 2026, 67 mayors in the largest 100 cities by population are affiliated with the Democratic Party, 22 are affiliated with the Republican Party, one is affiliated with the Libertarian Party, three are independents, five identify as nonpartisan or unaffiliated, and two mayors' affiliations are unknown. Click here for a list of the 100 largest cities' mayors and their partisan affiliations.
Mayoral elections are officially nonpartisan in most of the nation's largest cities. However, many officeholders are affiliated with political parties. Ballotpedia uses one or more of the following sources to identify each officeholder's partisan affiliation: (1) direct communication from the officeholder, (2) current or previous candidacy for partisan office, or (3) identification of partisan affiliation by multiple media outlets.
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About the city
- See also: Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is a city in Erie County, New York. As of 2020, its population was 278,349.
City government
- See also: Mayor-council government
The city of Buffalo uses a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body while the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.[15]
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Buffalo, New York | ||
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo | New York | |
| Population | 278,349 | 20,201,249 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 40 | 47,123 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 47.1% | 62.3% |
| Black/African American | 35.2% | 15.4% |
| Asian | 6.3% | 8.6% |
| Native American | 0.5% | 0.4% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0% |
| Other (single race) | N/A | 8.6% |
| Multiple | 5.3% | 4.7% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 12.2% | 19.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 85.7% | 87.2% |
| College graduation rate | 28.6% | 37.5% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $39,677 | $71,117 |
| Persons below poverty level | 28.3% | 13.6% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2015-2020). | ||
| **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
2025 battleground elections
- See also: Battlegrounds
This was a battleground election. Other 2025 battleground elections included:
- City elections in San Jose, California (2025)
- Miami Board of Commissioners District 4 special election (2025)
- Wisconsin Superintendent of Public Instruction election, 2025
See also
| Buffalo, New York | New York | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ City & State, "The upstate mayoral primary races you should know about," May 27, 2025
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 WBFO-FM 88.7, "Buffalo Mayoral Primary: Who will separate themselves from the rest?" February 27, 2025
- ↑ City of Buffalo, "Mayor Christopher P. Scanlon's Biography," accessed May 29, 2025
- ↑ WIVB, "A look at candidates who have announced their candidacy – and some who could consider a campaign," April 3, 2025
- ↑ Sean Ryan Campaign Website, "Meet Sean," accessed May 29, 2025
- ↑ Sean Ryan Campaign Website, "Sean Ryan earns endorsement from Erie County Democratic Committee," February 22, 2025
- ↑ WGRZ, "Buffalo mayor race heats up with claims of GOP influence," June 2, 2025
- ↑ Buffalo News, "Sean Ryan is endorsed for Buffalo mayor by Democrats," February 22, 2025
- ↑ WIVB, "Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz endorses Sean Ryan for Buffalo mayor," June 3, 2025
- ↑ Buffalo Toronto Public Media, "Candidate Conversations: Buffalo Mayoral Primary with State Sen. Sean Ryan," May 31, 2025
- ↑ City of Buffalo, "History of Mayors, accessed May 29, 2025
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Outside Spending," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Total Outside Spending by Election Cycle, All Groups," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ National Review.com, "Why the Media Hate Super PACs," December 12, 2021
- ↑ City of Buffalo, "History of the Common Council," accessed October 28, 2014
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