Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Mayoral election in Buffalo, New York (2017)
2019 →
← 2015
|
| 2017 Buffalo mayoral elections |
|---|
 |
| Election dates |
| Filing deadline: July 13, 2017 |
| Primary election: September 12, 2017 General election: November 7, 2017 |
| Election stats |
| Offices up: Mayor and two city judges |
| Total seats up: 3 (click here for other city elections) |
| Election type: Partisan |
| Other municipal elections |
| U.S. municipal elections, 2017 |
The city of Buffalo, New York, held an election for mayor in 2017. Mayor Byron Brown won re-election to a fourth term, winning 68 percent of the vote in the general election. Brown defeated Erie County legislator Betty Jean Grant and city comptroller Mark Schroeder in the Democratic primary. Schroeder also ran in the Reform Party primary, defeating Ashleigh Somers. Also running in the general election was Conservative Party candidate Anita Howard and Green Party candidate Terrence Robinson.
Buffalo also held an election for two city judgeships; click here for more information about those races. A primary election occurred on September 12, 2017, and the general election was on November 7, 2017. In New York, candidates may file to run with more than one party.The filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was July 13, 2017.[1][2]
Elections
General election
Candidates
☑ Mayor Byron Brown (i) 
☐ Anita Howard 
☐ Terrence Robinson 
☐ City comptroller Mark Schroeder 
Political party key:
Democratic
Republican
Conservative Party
Green Party
Independence Party
Reform Party
Women's Equality Party
Working Families Party
Results
| Mayor of Buffalo, General Election, 2017 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic/Independence/Women's Equality/Working Families |  Byron Brown Incumbent |
67.67% | 29,688 | |
| Reform | Mark Schroeder | 26.09% | 11,446 | |
| Conservative | Anita Howard | 3.09% | 1,357 | |
| Green | Terrence Robinson | 2.91% | 1,276 | |
| Write-in votes | 0.23% | 102 | ||
| Total Votes | 43,869 | |||
| Source: Erie County Board of Elections, "General Election Official Results," accessed December 18, 2017 | ||||
Primary election
Democratic primary
☑ Mayor Byron Brown (i)
☐ Erie County Legislator Betty Jean Grant
☐ City comptroller Mark Schroeder
Reform primary
☑ City comptroller Mark Schroeder
☐ Ashleigh Somers
Results
| Mayor of Buffalo, Democratic Primary Election, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Byron Brown Incumbent |
51.62% | 13,999 |
| Mark Schroeder | 35.17% | 9,538 |
| Betty Jean Grant | 12.71% | 3,446 |
| Write-in votes | 0.5% | 136 |
| Total Votes | 27,119 | |
| Source: Erie County Board of Elections, "Official Democratic Primary Election Results," September 12, 2017 | ||
| Mayor of Buffalo, Reform Primary Election, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Mark Schroeder |
64.89% | 255 |
| Ashleigh Somers | 11.45% | 45 |
| Write-in votes | 23.66% | 93 |
| Total Votes | 393 | |
| Source: Erie County Board of Elections, "Official Reform Primary Election Results," September 12, 2017 | ||
Polling
| 2017 Buffalo Mayoral Election | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Byron Brown | Betty Jean Grant | Mark Schroeder | Don't know/No opinion | Margin of error | Sample size | |||||||||||||
| The Spectrum News/Siena College (September 5-7, 2017) | 49% | 11% | 26% | 14% | +/-4.8 | 512 | |||||||||||||
| The Spectrum News/Siena College (August 6-9, 2017) | 51% | 13% | 24% | 12% | +/-3.9 | 651 | |||||||||||||
| AVERAGES | 50% | 12% | 25% | 13% | +/-4.35 | 581.5 | |||||||||||||
| Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org. | |||||||||||||||||||
Campaign finance
The table below shows total contributions and expenditures for Buffalo mayoral candidates from January 1, 2017 to August 23, 2017. As of August 23, 2017, the third Democratic candidate, Betty Jean Grant, had not created a new campaign committee for her mayoral run.[3]
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: New York elections, 2017
The general election for mayor of Buffalo shared the ballot with elections for two city judgeships, Erie County officials, local trial courts, and three statewide ballot measures.
Issues
Endorsements
The table below shows endorsements for the 2017 Buffalo mayoral election. If you know of other groups that endorsed candidates in the mayoral race, please email us at editor@ballotpedia.org.
| Candidate endorsements for Democratic primary | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Endorsement | Byron Brown | Betty Jean Grant | Mark Schroeder |
| Erie County Democratic Committee’s Executive Committee[4] |  |
||
| Buffalo Police Benevolent Association[5] | | ||
| The Buffalo News[6] | |
||
About the city
- See also: Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is a city in Erie County, New York. As of 2010, its population was 261,310.
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.[7]
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
| Demographic Data for Buffalo, New York | ||
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo | New York | |
| Population | 261,310 | 19,378,102 |
| Land area (sq mi) | 40 | 47,123 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White | 47.1% | 63.7% |
| Black/African American | 36.5% | 15.7% |
| Asian | 5.9% | 8.4% |
| Native American | 0.5% | 0.4% |
| Pacific Islander | 0% | 0% |
| Other (single race) | 5.9% | 8.7% |
| Multiple | 4% | 3.1% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 12.3% | 19% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate | 84.6% | 86.8% |
| College graduation rate | 27.6% | 36.6% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income | $37,354 | $68,486 |
| Persons below poverty level | 30.1% | 14.1% |
| Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2010). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2014-2019). | ||
| **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. | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Buffalo mayoral election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Buffalo, New York | New York | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Erie County Board of Elections, "2017 Filing Calendar," accessed June 1, 2017
- ↑ Erie County Board of Elections, "2017 Petitions Filed," accessed July 14, 2017
- ↑ Spectrum News, "Brown holds significant fundraising edge in mayoral primary," July 19, 2017
- ↑ Buffalo News, "Democrats endorse Mayor Brown for fourth term, back Tolbert for sheriff," May 4, 2017
- ↑ Buffalo News, "Labor Council won't make endorsement in Buffalo mayoral race," July 25, 2017
- ↑ The Buffalo News, "Editorial: The News endorses Byron Brown for mayor," August 31, 2017
- ↑ City of Buffalo, "History of the Common Council," accessed October 28, 2014
 |
State of New York Albany (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
