BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN)....In a pair of upsets within the Erie County Democratic Party Jon Rivera and Adam Bojak emerged as winners in two, hard-fought primaries.
"They slayed two dragons," said Sarah Buckley, CWA Local 1168 legislative political director.
Rivera, who has been in the state Assembly since being elected in 2020, beat incumbent State Sen. Jeremy Zellner by more than 10 percentage points. Zellner, who is also Erie County Democratic Party chairman, was elected to the state senate seat in February.
According to unofficial Erie County Board of Elections primary night data, Rivera garnered 10,076 votes of 54.84% to Zellner's 8,270 votes or 45.01%.
The 61st District includes portions of the Town of Amherst and City of Buffalo along with all of the City of Tonawanda, Towns of Tonawanda and Grand Island and the Villages of Kenmore and Williamsville.
Zellner had the support of such Democratic Party leaders as Gov. Kathy Hochul, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz and Congressman Tim Kennedy.
Rivera had strong labor support.
"This win shows the establishment is defeatable," said Geovaira Parra, Working Families Party Western New York regional director.
Rivera credited his victory to a strong team, mostly backed by labor and disenfranchised voters.
"We listened to the people," Rivera said.
At the Indigo Chapel on Lafayette Avenue, supporters of Rivera and Bojak were loud and in a celebratory mood as compared to Zellner's headquarters at Britesmith Brewery on Niagara Street that became subdued and shocked by the results.
"This is just the beginning," said State Sen. April Baskin. "Tonight proved nothing is impossible."
Bojak, 42, an attorney and housing advocate, won a three-person Democratic Party primary race for what will be Rivera's former Assembly seat in the 149th District.
Bojak received 49.63 percent, or 3,961 votes to endorsed candidate Karen Hoak's 33.22 percent or 2,651 votes and Kevin Deese's 17.03 percent, 1,359 votes.
The district includes portions of Buffalo, Hamburg and Lackawanna.
"I'm not proposing anything radical, just things that people need," Bojak said.
Key issues for both Bojak and Rivera include better health care coverage for all New York residents, fighting President Trump's policies and protecting citizens from ICE raids.
"We want to run up the score in November and send a strong message," Bojak said.
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Rivera out polls Zellner by nearly 2,000 votes in 61st State Senate race
Rivera out polls Zellner by nearly 2,000 votes in 61st State Senate race
