It turns out Josh Allen, Jordan Poyer and Kyle Okposo really don't care who wins the election for Tonawanda Town Board.
But you could excuse voters for coming to a different conclusion.
The Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres now say they blundered in making in-kind donations – signed photos of Allen and Poyer and an autographed Okposo hockey puck – to the campaign of Stephen R. Brown, a Republican Town Board candidate.
Brown clearly identified himself and the reason for his request when he filled out online forms asking the organizations to contribute auction prizes for a pair of campaign fundraisers, according to interviews and election records.
"Our organizations do not endorse or provide financial support to individual political candidates," Pegula Sports and Entertainment, which owns and operates the Bills and Sabres, said in a statement to The Buffalo News. "These requests were made online and mistakenly fulfilled contrary to company policy."
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Brown recalled he was pleasantly surprised the teams agreed to contribute.
"I was expecting, 'Oh, we can’t get involved politically,' which I got a lot of that," he said, adding he hopes no employees get disciplined for their lapses.
Brown is one of three Republicans running for Tonawanda Town Board this fall campaigning against two Democratic incumbents and a third Democratic candidate for an open seat.
Brown, a senior business analyst for a medical device company, tried something unusual for a candidate for town office: He offers an extensive selection of branded merchandise for sale on his campaign website.
He sells T-shirts, hoodies, onesies, throw pillows and other gear with his "Brown for the Town" and "People over Party" slogans.
Brown also cast an uncommonly wide net for business support and participation in two fundraisers – a spring golf tournament and a summertime dinner he combined with an informational session for town seniors.
His May 22 "spring scramble" golf tournament at the town's Brighton Park Golf Course cost $100 per person for a round of golf in a cart, prizes, food, drink and other items. The event included "sponsors" such as the Bills, West Herr Chevrolet of Orchard Park and several smaller businesses.
The Bills did not make a monetary contribution but provided the signed photos, each valued at $25, according to disclosure filings. Brown posted on his campaign Facebook page a photo of the pictures he planned to auction off.
The team, since Terry Pegula was approved as owner in October 2014, has donated to three candidates – not counting the photos for Brown – including $150 to Sheriff Tim Howard in 2016 and $500 to Mayor Byron Brown in 2017, along with other contributions to political action committees.
West Herr contributed $400 to Brown, state election records show, even though the large regional auto group doesn't have a dealership in the town.
A West Herr spokeswoman on Thursday wasn't able to elaborate on the contribution. The auto group has made 68 donations totaling $21,524 since 2000 to Democrats and Republicans alike.
The Sabres donated the signed Okposo puck, also valued at $25, for a symposium and dinner Brown hosted June 29 at the NOCO Pavilion. It's the first political contribution the Sabres organization has made since 2002, state records show.
Brown said he, again, filled out an online form requesting the donation.
"The dedicated spirit of the Buffalo Sabres community is based on the caring organizations, people and the causes they support," a Sabres community outreach coordinator wrote to Brown. "These efforts are very important to the Buffalo Sabres and we commend your dedication and wish you much success with your endeavors."
Brown invited Brighton-Eggert Pharmacy, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield of Western New York and Independent Health to answer questions about Medicare and other programs.
"The whole goal was to get information out to seniors," he said.
However, someone who heard about the event reached out to the companies to alert them to its political ties.
"Brighton-Eggert Pharmacy was going to come," Brown said. "But then they call me and said somebody told them I was a candidate for Town Board so they had to pull out."
Dean Arthur, a manager at the pharmacy his father owns, said the store tends to stay out of politics and they would have done the same if a Democratic candidate was hosting.
The pharmacy has made two total political contributions, $500 each to a pair of Democrats, online campaign records show.
Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield and Independent Health opted to attend anyway.
“Our participation in the symposium was strictly to serve as a Medicare resource to seniors in need," Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield of Western New York spokesman Kyle Rogers said in a statement. "Our company made no financial contribution or endorsement to the organizer of this event.”
Independent Health said two of its Medicare RedShirt experts attended the event to talk about the insurer's Medicare Advantage plans.
"It was our belief this was a senior-focused health fair," spokesman Frank Sava said in an email. "We typically would not participate in events that are primarily a fundraiser for a political candidate. We have participated in health fairs hosted by an elected official that are for the benefit of the community."
Tonawanda Democratic Chairman John Crangle declined to comment on the corporate donations and symposium participation.
Brown, for his part, said he would change one thing about the senior forum.
"I’m going to do it again next year but we’re going to drop the fundraiser aspect," he said.
