BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown could be making a major career change after being offered a contract to become the next President and CEO of Western Regional Off-Track Betting.
During a special meeting held in early September, the OTB board of directors voted unanimously to offer Brown the job and replace the current President and CEO, Henry Wojtaszek, who's leaving the gambling agency at the end of the year.
Watch reaction to Mayor Brown's offer as next President and CEO of Off-Track Betting.
Although Brown said he's currently negotiating the contract, his offer has sparked a growing list of candidates for the next mayoral race.
Here's my conversation with 7 News' Political Analyst Bob McCarthy about the possible contenders.
Mirand: We, as anticipated, know that [Brown] got that offer recently from OTB to be the next President and CEO.
McCarthy: Right
Mirand: Where do we go from here?
McCarthy: Everything that we hear seems to point to an October 1 deadline or a goal. Let's put it that way, for OTB to come to a decision. There's some complicated negotiations going on, from what I understand, there are some issues from what I understand, all that will have to be worked out, and they're touchy, and so we'll see how they finally figure things out. Nevertheless, I don't think there's anybody who doesn't expect that Byron Brown will be leaving City Hall to be working in Batavia pretty soon.
Mirand: We haven't heard about Brown accepting this contract yet from OTB, but we anticipate this. And it seems that before he has even accepted it, people are talking about that June primary.
McCarthy: That's the way it works.
Mirand: Let's start with people that we're pretty sure are interested in running for mayor. Chris Scanlon is one.
McCarthy: He's at the top of the list because he'll be the acting mayor. He brings with him a very strong organization. The biggest advantage he brings is incumbency. He's already raising money. He's working at raising money, so that's going to be important.
Mirand: Another name we're hearing is Senator Sean Ryan.
McCarthy: Very important name. He's already established something that he calls a Victory Fund, which he's raising money for outside of his own Senate campaign fund. He has vast contacts and loyalties among various groups around the city. And it's important to note also to remember that the last three mayors of Buffalo have come from the Senate. Griffin, Masiello, Brown, and so he'd like to continue that.
Mirand: And then another member, keeping within city hall, is Council member Rasheed Wyatt.
McCarthy: I think that we'll see him. He's also a veteran of the council now. He's got vast contacts and the ability to raise money. We have to take him seriously.
Mirand: Another Council member, Zeneta Everhart
McCarthy: She's become a very well-known member of the Council. First of all, she's well known within the community because she worked very closely with Senator Tim Kennedy when he was in the Senate. Now Congressman Kennedy, so she's got a lot of contacts there. But she also has become not only well known in this city but around the country, as a mother of one of the people who was wounded in the May 14 shooting.
Mirand: And then lastly another Council member we're hearing is Leah Halton-Pope.
McCarthy: Also new to the Council, and somebody who also has vast contacts in the city as an aid to the Majority Leader of the assembly, Crystal People-Stokes. There are some who had her pegged to eventually succeed People-Stokes in the assembly. I don't know what her plans are, but her name is out there.
Mirand: Another name we've heard that Ed Drantch has been able to confirm with his sources is Garnell Whitfield.
McCarthy: Another name who not only was the Fire Commissioner of this city and was well known there, and has certainly all kinds of connections through that job, but his mother was a victim in that shooting. He's testified before Congress on this and become also a national figure in this tragedy, and he's gonna have some things to say as a result of this, not just the fact that, 'I was Fire Commissioner and I know how City Hall works.' He is gonna have some things to say if he decides to go down this road."
Mirand: And then a name that we heard last time there was a mayoral race.
McCarthy: Walton actually has shown she can win a Democratic primary. I'm not sure how serious she is. We've just seen some things on social media, but she would have a real claim on the left wing of the party, which can be a very strong thing, has some minor party connections, also, I think, Working Families, where she has actually been an employee of them various times. So, you shouldn't count her out.
Mirand: So safe to say, this is going to be an interesting June primary.
McCarthy: You and I have talked before about how this is such a significant development in the history of the city. Byron Brown was the longest-serving mayor in the long history of this city. And so therefore just the mere fact that he's stepping away means that everything is different. The political factions are different, the loyalties are different. Fundraising will be different, and people are going to have to make some decisions about where they want to land. And so therefore that's going to be really the thing to watch. How does the political landscape change? And it's going to change.
