Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Now that the Western Regional OTB Board of Directors has offered the position of president and CEO to Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown, what happens if he accepts the deal?
Brown cannot hand-pick his successor, according to Republican strategist Carl Calabrese.
"My understanding of the City Charter is if there's a vacancy in midterm, the [Common] Council President automatically becomes the interim mayor," said Calabrese in an interview with WBEN.
That would be Chris Scanlon becoming the new mayor to replace Brown, whose term as Buffalo Mayor was set to end at the end of December 2025.
After becoming interim mayor, Scanlon would likely have to face a primary in order to hold his seat full-time in a primary election.
"Word on the street in political circles is that [State] Sen. Sean Ryan may very well enter that primary. So you could have a primary of those two men, and there may be a third and more enter a primary of that nature," Calabrese said.
He adds it's too early to place a bet on who the favorite would be.
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Calabrese says like any other job, being a city mayor has a shelf life.
"It might be 20 years, it might be 20 months, but eventually every job, you reach a point where you say, 'It's not fun anymore, I want to do something different.' Whether it'd be a new job or even retirement," Calabrese said.
One of Brown's legacies, according to Calabrese, will be his ability as an executive to survive politically.
"Legislators can do it because legislators make decisions about nice sounding legislation that they get a lot of credit for. But then that nice sounding legislation has to be turned over to a town supervisor, a mayor, a county executive, governor or president to implement. That's where the tough decisions are, and that's where some people are pleased and some people get their feathers ruffled. That's why executives tend to have a much shorter shelf life than legislators," Calabrese said.
He adds most executives don't go longer than three terms. Brown is currently serving his fifth term in office as mayor.
While this is an opportunity many don't get everyday, Calabrese says Brown may be looking at other matters in his possible acceptance.
"He may be looking at the future in Buffalo, and the future right now looks like he might be facing a very, very serious financial deficit situation sometime in the next 6-to-10 months. That may have weighed on as well," Calabrese noted.
Brown must still agree to the terms of a contract with Western Regional OTB, which must be approved by the Board of Directors.