With just three days left in one of the most intense mayoral races in Buffalo history, India Walton and Byron Brown took to the streets Saturday to shake hands, hand out candy and persuade any undecided voters to come to their side.
Walton voted early – presumably for herself – while Brown gladhanded on Hertel Avenue. Both attracted crowds as they attended multiple events across the city in a final push to motivate undecided voters before Election Day.
Since defeating incumbent Mayor Byron W. Brown in the June Democratic primary, Walton has gone from "India Who?" to universally recognized on the streets of Buffalo.
Walton cast her vote at the Gloria J. Parks Community Center in the University District. She arrived at the early voting site with Jumaane Williams, the New York City public advocate and rising star in the progressive movement.
Before she could introduce her sons to Williams, a possible gubernatorial candidate, Walton heard from her own supporters.
"Yeah, India!" shouted Carla Kuhl. "You go girl, for all of us women."
People are also reading…
Kuhl, of the East Side, said she was drawn to Walton because of her authentic concern for the poor.
"She's a real human being," Kuhl said. "She doesn't seem to be driven by power and all the perks you get as a politician."
Democratic mayoral candidate India Walton votes at the Gloria J. Parks Community Center, Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021. She was accompanied by her four sons, three of whom voted as well.
Walton acknowledged that the campaign has turned negative in recent weeks with TV commercials and attacks by Brown on her record as non-profit leader.
"I'm a strong person. I'm a Buffalonian," Walton said. "It's going to take more than some nasty words to knock me down."
Brown, a veteran of the city's formidable Democratic politics finds himself in uncharted territory. If he wants to win a fifth term as mayor, he must do it in a write-in effort rarely attempted on such a large scale.
Two miles away, Brown handed out candy under the marquee of the North Park Theater during the annual "Halloween on Hertel" trick-or-treat event.
While children dressed as superheroes scurried to collect sweets, Brown shook hands with North Buffalo residents like Carol Corr, who wanted to talk about the campaign.
"The city's doing great. We have four children and they all live here. Twenty years ago, 10 years ago, they wouldn't have been able to do that. I think he has a lot to do with that," Corr said, pointing to Brown.
Ed Corr, her husband, lamented that historically in Buffalo, "the politicians have single-handedly really run this town down through a variety of different policies. Byron's been smart: he hasn't gotten in the way of progress."
Mayor Byron Brown stops in at the Buffalo Renaissance Foundation Community Center on East Ferry Street where the community is holding a Halloween party for the kids , Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021. He talks with Joy Harrison, 10.
Brown said Saturday he "can't predict" the race's outcome, given the complications that could result from asking voters to correctly write-in his name on the ballot.
"We're running like we're behind," the mayor said. "I'm literally going from early in the morning until late at night."
Unlike most Buffalonians, Pastor Darius Pridgen is not taking sides during one of Buffalo’s most contentious mayoral elections.
“I’ve chosen at this time not to endorse either candidate, but to endorse democracy,” Pridgen said during a brief interview Saturday with The Buffalo News. “And I want people to go out and vote and make their choice.”
Then why did Pridgen, the Common Council president, have a Walton sign in front of his Masten Avenue home Saturday morning? Because the former nurse and non-profit leader asked if her campaign could put one there.
Pridgen said he called Mayor Byron W. Brown soon after and told him he was also welcome to put a sign on Pridgen’s lawn. A campaign worker staked one down later in the day.
Buffalo Common Council president and True Bethel pastor Darius Pridgen has an @Indiawaltonbflo sign on his lawn, but says he’s not endorsing anyone & invited both campaigns to put signs up. “I want people to vote, and that’s the bottom line.” He endorsed @byronwbrown in primary. pic.twitter.com/wTflbj55gD
— Charlie Specht (@Charlie_Reports) October 30, 2021
In the Democratic primary, Walton won the Ellicott District, which Pridgen represents, with 51.2% of the vote. Brown garnered 45.6% percent of the vote.
“Obviously, the endorsement didn’t mean that much in the primary, because I endorsed the mayor,” Pridgen said.
Both candidates attended services at True Bethel Baptist Church two Sundays ago and gave short speeches, Pridgen said. While the exchange was civil, Brown’s write-in campaign and Walton’s drive to become America's first big-city socialist mayor in 60 years has divided the city, he said.
“This campaign, this race, has at times horribly divided this community,” Pridgen said. “I know families that are arguing and are falling apart, friendships that have broken up, people who are against their pastors right now because of who they’re endorsing.”
Pridgen said he is trying to play the role of peacemaker, while assuring Buffalonians that even if their candidate loses on Tuesday, the city will be OK.
“One of them will be the mayor,” Pridgen said. “I’m going to have to work with one of them. What I don’t want to see is this whole community just fall apart over a race that’s going to be over and that one person is going to win.”
While the mayor wields the ultimate power and influence in city government, Pridgen said that residents should ground themselves when the campaign rhetoric heats up in the next few days.
“Buffalo is strong,” he said. “One person on the second floor (of City Hall) is not going to be able to change an entire city overnight.”
Other notes from the campaign trail:
• Not all went according to plan Saturday. Brown showed up late to a Lovejoy community center where he was scheduled to speak. Walton had planned to vote with University District Council Member Rasheed N.C. Wyatt, but Wyatt did not attend.
• Brown, donning a blue Buffalo hoodie under a sport coat, described his Halloween costume as "mayor of the City of Buffalo." Walton, meanwhile, wrote on Twitter that she was dressed as "Carl Paladino's worst nightmare."
• In the latest campaign reports filed with the State Board of Elections, Brown received a total of $6,500 on Friday from companies associated with Buffalo developers and restaurateurs. Walton received $1,000 from a member of a New York City non-profit group that advocates for progressive causes.
