2025 Buffalo mayoral election

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2025 Buffalo Democratic mayoral primary

← 2021 June 24, 2025 2029 →
Turnout	27% of registered Democrats
Candidate Sean Ryan Christopher Scanlon Popular vote 12,439 9,430 Percentage 46.4% 35.2%   Candidate Garnell Whitfield Rasheed Wyatt Popular vote 2,204 2,066 Percentage 8.2% 7.7%
Results by Common Council district Ryan:      20–30%      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Scanlon:      40–50%      50–60%      80–90%
Previous Democratic nominee India Walton Democratic nominee Sean Ryan

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In anticipation of mayor Byron Brown's resignation, South Buffalo councilman and fellow Democrat Christopher Scanlon was elected president of the Buffalo Common Council by a council vote on January 2, 2024.^[3] Scanlon had organized Brown's write-in campaign for the 2021 Buffalo mayoral election that won him a fifth term.^[4] Brown resigned to become chief executive officer of Western Regional Off-Track Betting on October 15, 2024, making Scanlon the acting mayor through right of succession to serve out his remaining term.^[5]

State senator Sean Ryan was endorsed by the Erie County Democratic Committee on February 22, 2025.^[6] The endorsement process faced criticism, as committee chairman Jeremy Zellner announced Ryan's endorsement several days before a vote was held among membership.^[7] Zellner denied rumors that he had pushed for Ryan's endorsement in exchange for being appointed to Ryan's state senate seat if he won mayorship.^[7] As both party chairman and self-appointed Erie County board of elections commissioner, Zellner has been accused of having a conflict of interest with regards to elections and nominating petitions.^[8] Four candidates alleged impropriety in the endorsement process: Buffalo ReUse founder Michael Gainer, acting mayor Christopher Scanlon, former Buffalo Fire commissioner Garnell Whitfield, and common councilor Rasheed Wyatt.^[7][9]

Michael Gainer was disqualified from the primary after Sean Ryan sued him in New York Supreme Court, successfully alleging that his nominating petition contained fraud.^[10] Gainer then petitioned to run as an independent candidate in the general election, and he appeared on the Restore Buffalo line.^[11] Christopher Scanlon also completed an independent petition for the general election.^[12] Garnell Whitfield's petition for an independent line was disqualified by the Erie County board of elections after a challenge by Scanlon's campaign.^[13]

Frontrunners Sean Ryan and Christopher Scanlon both launched attack ads against each other in the leadup to the primary.^[14] Ryan's ads accused Scanlon of accepting donations from Republican Carl Paladino, while Scanlon's ads accused Ryan of endorsing 2021 candidate India Walton and her platform to defund the police.^[14]

Sean Ryan won the Democratic primary on June 24, 2025.^[15] 27% of registered Democrats cast ballots, which was a higher voter turnout than the 2021 primary.^[16] 7,500 ballots were cast during the nine-day early voting period, up from 2,684 in 2021.^[17] Christopher Scanlon withdrew his independent bid following the primary and announced he would return to the Buffalo Common Council presidency, ensuring a new mayor would be decided in the general election.^[18]

Candidates

Nominee

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Democratic candidates

Candidate	Experience	Announced	Ref
Sean Ryan	NY state senator for the 61st district (2021–present) NY assemblymember for the 149th district (2011–2021)	November 23, 2024 Website	[19]

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Eliminated in primary

• Christopher Scanlon, acting mayor^[20]
• Anthony Tyson-Thompson, former communications director for state assemblywoman Crystal Peoples-Stokes^[21]
• Garnell Whitfield, former Buffalo Fire commissioner^[22]
• Rasheed Wyatt, common councilor for the University district^[23]

Disqualified

• Michael Gainer, member of the Erie County Democratic Committee and founder of Buffalo ReUse (running as an independent)^[24]

Withdrawn

• Maggie Harter, community activist^[25]
• James McLeod, retired Buffalo City Court judge^[26]
• James Payne, community activist^[27]
• Terrence Robinson, community activist and Green nominee for mayor in 2017^[25]

Declined

• India Walton, community organizer and nominee for mayor in 2021^[28]

James Gardner was initially reported as being a placeholder candidate who would later give up his ballot line after the party nominated him to a judgeship in Yonkers.^[61] He denied those claims and declared his intention to compete in the general election.^[62] Erie County clerk Michael Kearns had reportedly offered to replace Gardner on the ballot.^[63]

Candidates

Nominee

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Republican candidates

Candidate	Experience	Announced	Ref
James Gardner	Erie County assistant district attorney (2010–2017) Nominee for Erie County district attorney in 2024	February 27, 2025 Website	[64]

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Declined

• Christopher Scanlon, acting mayor (Democratic)^[29]

The Working Families Party clarified that their nomination of Sean Ryan was contingent on him winning the Democratic primary.^[65] They reserved the right to rescind their nomination should he have been defeated, as the party historically does not endorse spoiler candidates.^[65] Ryan also said he would have withdrawn from the mayoral race if he lost the Democratic primary.^[66]

James Gardner has worked as a civil attorney for the law firm of Erie County Conservative Party chairman Ralph Lorigo since January 2025.^[67][68]

Michael Gainer and Christopher Scanlon filed independent petitions to run in the general election under new party lines, ensuring they would be able to continue their campaigns even if they failed to secure the Democratic nomination.^[12] Garnell Whitfield's independent petition was disqualified by the Erie County board of elections after a challenge by Scanlon's campaign.^[13] Scanlon announced that he was withdrawing his independent candidacy and would instead return to serving as Buffalo Common Council president.^[18]