India Walton Poised To Become Buffalo’s First Socialist Mayor

Walton, who would also be the city’s first female mayor, ran on police accountability and addressing poverty in one of the country’s poorest cities.

In a stunning upset Tuesday night, political newcomer India Walton appeared set to knock off longtime incumbent Byron Brown in the Democratic primary for mayor of Buffalo. Backed by the Democratic Socialists of America and the Working Families Party, Walton is on the brink of defeating Buffalo’s four-term mayor and a close ally of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.  With all precincts counted, Walton declared victory while holding a 1,507-vote lead, which amounts to a 7-percentage-point margin in a low-turnout primary race where only about 21,000 votes were cast. Brown did not concede during brief remarks at his election night rally. His campaign is counting on outstanding absentee ballots to close the gap. Only 1,536 absentee ballots were returned on Tuesday night, according to WIVB-TV in Buffalo, but more could arrive in the coming days.  If Walton’s lead holds, and if Brown doesn’t mount an independent campaign this fall, Walton has a clear path to becoming the first female mayor of Buffalo, as well as the first socialist — and the first socialist mayor of a major city in half a century. There is no Republican candidate for the fall election, and President Joe Biden claimed close to 80% of Buffalo’s vote in last year’s presidential election.