New York state Sen. Sean Ryan has been elected the next mayor of Buffalo, according to the Associated Press, ushering in a new political chapter in City Hall as the city’s first new mayor in 20 years.
The Democratic state lawmaker defeated Republican Erie County Assistant District Attorney James Gardner and independent candidate and founder of Buffalo ReUse Action, Michael Gainer.
As of 11:05 p.m., with 95% of the vote counted, Ryan led with 72.3% of the vote compared to 23% for Gardner and 4.7% for Gainer.
“One person after another told me their most cherished memories of a better Buffalo,” Ryan said Tuesday night. “These folks have never lost hope, never lost faith that a better Buffalo was possible and I took those conversations to heart. But I also heard about a city government that has been failing at the basics for too long. Filling the potholes, plowing the streets, fixing the community centers, opening the pools — all these little things, they add up to a lack of trust in city government. Every person I talked to agreed that Buffalo deserves better.”
Ryan grew up in Lackawanna and graduated from the State University of New York at Fredonia and Brooklyn Law School. He has served in the state Senate since 2021 after 10 years in the state Assembly. He has most recently served as chair of the Senate Commerce, Economic Development and Small Business Committee.
He decided to run for mayor following longtime Mayor Byron Brown’s departure for another job last year. Ryan was the favorite among the party apparatus over Acting Mayor Chris Scanlon and other Democratic candidates. Ryan defeated Scanlon in the June Democratic primary.
Ryan will be sworn in as mayor on Jan. 1, 2026.
A special election will be held, presumably next spring, to fill Ryan’s seat in the state Senate. Under current state law, Gov. Kathy Hochul has to schedule a special election within 10 days from being notified of a vacancy, which then must take place within 80 days.