Some activists are expressing dissatisfaction with the candidacy of City Comptroller Mark Schroeder. His campaign will split the vote, they contend, potentially undermining the pioneering County Legislator Betty Jean Grant, a longtime leader in the city’s growing social justice movement.
They argue that South Buffalo already controls the region’s only Democratic state senate district, and the region’s only Democratic congressional district. A mayor from South Buffalo would only exacerbate the underrepresentation.
Grant is a formidable political contender who is capable of mobilizing the city’s African American community without needing to raise or spend large sums of money. In a Democratic Party primary against a deeply unpopular three term incumbent, Grant has the upper hand.
She is seen as authentic, honest, and trustworthy. Her supporters credit her willingness to take politically courageous stands and to speak up about issues that other politicians ignore.
Grant certainly has the experience — just as Schroeder does. She is the former Chairwoman of the Erie County Legislature and continues to lead the Democratic caucus. In addition to the Legislature, she has served in the Common Council and on the Buffalo Board of Education.
If elected, she would be the first woman to serve as Mayor of Buffalo.
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